Socceroos coach Holger Osieck's job on the line in 'friendly' against France Better days: Socceroos coach Holger Osieck celebrates getting into the FIFA World Cup with one of his stars, Tim Cahill. Picture: Bradley Hunter. IT never rains, eh Holger? As if tomorrow's "friendly" with France wasn't a fraught enough occasion as it is, now your creative players are going down like flies. It's almost enough to make a coach feel fated. The news that Dario Vidosic will almost certainly be ruled out of the game at the Stade de France by a groin strain - and that Tommy Oar is struggling to be fit - comes after the withdrawals of Tom Rogic and Brett Holman, and means a probable reshaping of the attack. Just what you need in a game against a top European side, when everyone knows your job is on the line. Osieck must be wondering quite how it came to this. One of the earliest qualifiers for the World Cup, for a coach these games should be a pleasant opportunity to run through the strength in the ranks as the countdown to the World Cup continues. Instead the 6-0 defeat to Brazil last month didn't so much deflate the World Cup optimism as shred it and scatter the fragments to the wind. Just as one swallow does not make a summer, so one bad defeat wouldn't normally carry so much weight - the problem is that Osieck has used up the patience of his employer and many supporters along the way. To be fair his first 12 months in charge were impressive, but since then the lack of any obvious progression in the side - in its style, its personnel - has soured the perceptions of him as a coach. When one of his players privately laments the lack of a philosophy for how the side should play, that should sound alarm bells. Nor is this critique just jumping on the bandwagon, as has been the accusation in some quarters. Back in November 2011, after a hugely fortuitous win in Thailand (and loss in Oman) Osieck didn't take kindly to suggestions from this columnist that the victory wasn't merited. Further questions were asked over the losses to Scotland and Jordan in 2012 - in both cases, querying the direction the side was supposed to be heading in - and over Osieck's selections in the East Asian Cup qualifiers last December. After the shambles of a performance in drawing with Oman in April, Osieck disarmed his critics on the night with a cute one-liner, but ultimately the concerns continued. This has gone on too long to believe that a meritorious display against France, and a probable defeat of Canada next week, will herald a new dawn that carries us into the World Cup in good heart. That's why this newspaper argued that the end of the road had been reached for Osieck in the wake of the Brazil game. It wasn't just the scoreline, or even the bewildered, misshapen display. The fact that Osieck put his players on a 7.30pm curfew every night in camp, but seemed incapable of preparing his team in football terms, said it all. But no football association should like sacking a coach, and Osieck remains the master of his own destiny - if he can coax an improved performance from the side tomorrow. To that end France are a far more obliging opponent, having won only one of their past six games. They also know they face another World Cup qualifier next week, which has rather more priority, and then a playoff in November.