SoccerNews.com

Australia’s two-goal hero Tim Cahill has urged undecided striker Mark Viduka to return to the international fold to spearhead the Socceroos’ World Cup bid in South Africa next year.

Viduka, 33, missed all 14 qualifiers over the past 16 months as Australia bagged a place in the 2010 finals with two games to spare.

The Newcastle United striker last played for his country in the quarter-final loss on penalties to Japan at the 2007 Asian Cup in Hanoi.

Injury, coupled with a decision to focus exclusively on Newcastle’s failed attempt to stay in the Premier League, kept him away from international duty.

Cahill, whose two goals in the team’s 2-1 victory over Japan on Wednesday ensured Australia finished top of their Asian World Cup qualifying group, has issued a plea for Viduka to lead Australia’s attack in South Africa.

“He’s a player of stature and brings to the team his experience, knowledge and goals,” Cahill was quoted as saying in Friday’s press.

“People question that he doesn’t get his goals, but he does all the ugly work, holds the ball up, makes us look good, makes me look good.

“We miss that and it’s crazy because we’ll take any experience.”

Australian coach Pim Verbeek has made several fruitless attempts to get Viduka back into the Australian squad.

Goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, who plays for Fulham in the English Premier League, said it would be pointless considering Viduka for the World Cup unless he showed total commitment to Australia’s cause.

“You’ve got to be crazy to say you don’t want a fit Mark Viduka, an enthusiastic, determined Mark Viduka in your squad,” Schwarzer said Friday.

“But they are the key words, he needs to be fit, to be determined and hungry, to still want to play.

“There’s no point having any player that doesn’t want to be there. You need players that are 100 percent committed to the cause.”

Cahill said Australia’s comfortable qualification has put pressure on the Socceroos to improve on their last World Cup performance in Germany where they were beaten by eventual champions Italy via a last-minute penalty in the second round.

“The World Cup’s a lot of pressure on us now. We expect to do better and we’ll be putting a lot of pressure on ourselves to emulate what we did in Germany and, hopefully, go one better,” Cahill said.

The Everton star said he would be back at Goodison Park for the beginning of the English pre-season on July 13.

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