Cautious Australia play down favourites tag

Australia are playing down suggestions that they have next year's Asian Cup at their mercy after getting a dream draw in their first appearance at the region's biggest sporting event.

Local bookmakers have installed the Socceroos as favourites to win the July 7-29 tournament at the first attempt after they avoided the most dangerous opponents in the opening round draw made in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.

The team could not have wished for a better schedule after they were placed in Group A alongside Iraq, Oman and co-hosts Thailand, with the pool matches all in Bangkok.

Australia are the highest-ranked country in the 16-team event and were the only side from the Asian federation to reach the second round of this year's World Cup in Germany, but Socceroos coach Graham Arnold has urged caution.

Arnold said Australia were leaving nothing to chance and would be calling on all their heavyweight European-based players, but that alone was not enough to guarantee them victory.

"People are already saying we are favourites to win the tournament so the expectancy levels back home are very high," he told reporters yesterday.

"We are going in as the number one nation in Asia but we are going into a totally different environment. It will be hot and humid and our preparations must be spot on."

If they win the group, Australia would get the benefit of remaining in the Thai capital for a quarter-final against the runners-up in Group B, contested in Hanoi by defending champions Japan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

Japan are favourites to top that group after winning the Asian Cup in 1992, 2000 and 2004, leaving them and Australia with a seemingly smooth path to the semi-finals.

Their main rivals, South Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia and China, will battle for the other two spots in the more difficult bottom half of the draw.

South Korea, Asian champions in 1956 and 1960 and World Cup semi-finalists four years ago, were drawn in Group D with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Indonesia in what looks on paper to be the toughest pool.

Saudi Arabia won the tournament in 1984, 1988 and 1996, but ended up in the same group as South Korea because they failed to secure a seeding and had to play their pool matches in Indonesia or Malaysia because of diplomatic issues.