From his very first conversation with Mark Viduka, Guus Hiddink knew he had plenty of work to do.
What happened next is a story that has gone down in Socceroos history.
'Aussie Guus' led the Socceroos to the 2006 World Cup, the country's first for 32 years but his first impressions of the squad were anything but positive.
Speaking to current Socceroos head coach Graham Arnold ahead of his return to Australia next month to be part of the farewell match and 100th-anniversary celebrations, Hiddink recalled his first day on the job.
“I remember the first day because I’m always observing what is going on in new situations,” Hiddink explained.
“We had agreed that we had a dinner at six o'clock and the players came in dressed like lumberjacks. Some were wearing caps, others were wearing Bermudas and flip-flops.
“Some players came at six o'clock, as agreed, and others came at 6:30. I thought: ‘go ahead, guys, it's just like camping!
“I said: ‘my gosh, what did I start with now.’ But anyhow, we made some rules about being on time and being properly dressed when we are together.”
One thing that Hiddink worked out quickly was that he had to figure out a way to get the best out of Viduka.
Viduka, then at Middlesbrough in England, had a reputation for being enigmatic, but one of the world’s most unplayable strikers on his day.
In a classic example of the Dutchman’s man management style, Hiddink told Viduka to lose weight and Australia would qualify for the World Cup.
“Before the first training session, Viduka came to sit next to me,” Hiddink said.
He said: ‘boss why, for heavens sake, are you starting this job? ‘It’s impossible. We didn’t qualify for thirty two years, it’s impossible. We have to play South American teams’.
“I said: ‘Okay, now we are in September and our next training camp is in October so that is five weeks later. If you come back in October, and you have lost four kilos, then we are going to qualify.'
“Because he was a little bit overweight at that time and five weeks later he had lost some kilos.
“That’s when I said to him: ‘now my friend, we go ahead.’
“I liked very much the direct approach with players.”
Hiddink remembers his time as Socceroos coach as one of the most enjoyable in his career despite coaching the likes of Real Madrid, PSV Eindhoven, Chelsea, South Korea, Valencia and the Netherlands.
“Every now and then when I talk about my career with people, I always highlight my experience with the Socceroos,” Hiddink said.
This is one chapter in my career which gave me a lot of energy. I met very kind people and very open-minded people, which I liked very much.
“All the players in the beginning - regarding the World Cup qualification - were not very confident, because there was failure in the past.
“I liked very much the commitment of our players but I had to look for a balance in the team, not just to go for 100 or 110 per cent commitment in the fighting spirit.
“I had to seek and search for more balance between the commitment and also the tactical executions of what I want to play strategically ... the tactical creation for those players. It was nice, because when players are committed, then you can work with them.”