The Socceroos were reeling after Graham Arnold's surprise resignation, but Tony Popovic has steadied the ship.

Tony Popovic’s side will rue their missed chances against Saudi Arabia in their crucial World Cup qualifier at Melbourne’s AAMI Park.

Australia and Saudi Arabia meet in Melbourne on Thursday night in a crucial World Cup qualification match. Both sides are level on five points in their group, with Australia holding a slightly better goal differential. ABC Sport will be live blogging the World Cup qualifier between Australia and Saudi Arabia from 7pm AEDT.

Australia hosts Saudi Arabia in a crucial World Cup qualifier at Melbourne on Thursday while Japan and South Korea can take a big step towards North America in 2026 when the third round of Asian qualifying reaches the halfway stage.

Australia and Saudi Arabia drew 0-0 in Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup on Thursday. While there was late drama there was little quality on display. Near time, Sultan Al-Ghannam's low shot from just inside the area went in and seemed to give a vital win for Herve Renard,

Saudi Arabia had a goal disallowed in added time as they ground out a scoreless draw against Australia on Thursday, a result that did neither side any favours in their bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

The Socceroos face their most important World Cup qualifier when they host Saudi Arabia in Melbourne. A win could put them in the box seat to qualify for the tournament automatically.