Australia to play Germany in friendly

Melbourne: Australia will meet Germany in a friendly in Monchengladbach on March 29, Football Federation Australia said on Friday.

Australia were humiliated 4-0 by World Cup semi-finalists Germany in their group match at the South Africa finals, a crushing loss the Socceroos were ultimately unable to recover from as they bowed out of the tournament in the first round.

"This will be a very special match and a great opportunity to test ourselves against a very well-respected opponent," said Australia's German coach Holger Osieck.

"But I am confident that our players will be up for the challenge against such quality opposition."

Australia will next play World Cup quarter-finalists Paraguay in a friendly in Sydney on Oct. 9 as they prepare for the Jan. 7-29 Asia Cup in Qatar where they are in Group C with South Korea, India and Bahrain.