Ex England great to coach at Asian Cup in Oz

Former England, Chelsea and AC Milan midfielder Ray Wilkins will be heading to Australia for the Asian Cup after he was appointed coach of Jordan.

Wilkins, who played 84 times for England, was appointed on a five-month deal. 

His assistant will be Frank Stapleton, the former Arsenal player. 

“We are going to go down there [to Australia] in January and attempt to achieve something with them. I saw the guys train, they look a very lively bunch, so we’re looking forward to getting stuck in,” Wilkins told The Guardian

“It’s only for five months, it’s not a long-term thing, it’s just until we get the Asian Cup over with. They’ve (Jordan) reached the quarter-finals on the last two occasions, so let’s hope we can go a couple better."

The world 56th-ranked Jordan side is in the same group and Japan, Iraq and Palestine.

Wilkins joins after spending time last season at relegated EPL club Fulham. He has also worked as a coach at Chelsea.

The Socceroos will be looking to win their first AFC Asian Cup when Asia’s biggest football tournament heads to Australia in January 2015.

32 matches over 23 days will be played in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Newcastle with the Socceroos kicking off the tournament against Kuwait in Melbourne on January 9.

Socceroos tickets start from $49 for adults and $24.50 for children.

All other group matches start from just $15 for adults and $5 for children.