Leckie back to fire Aussies into quarters

Well that was worth the wait.

Mathew Leckie may have taken his time to get involved in Australia's Asian Cup defence but he sure didn't take long to make an impact.

The 27-year-old spent the group stages recovering from a hamstring tear suffered before the tournament while on club duties in Germany.

He returned to full training on Saturday, allowing coach Graham Arnold to name him on the bench for Tuesday's round of 16 clash with Uzbekistan in Al Ain.

After a goalless first half and with Australia struggling for penetration, Arnold's shouts of "Lecks! Leckie!" from the bench midway through the second half signalled it was time for the Hertha Berlin man to get involved.

Leckie made an instant impact, nearly scoring when he burst through the left side of Uzbekistan's defence only for veteran goalkeeper Ignatiy Nesterov to deny him.

There was nothing Nesterov could do about an hour later when Leckie fired home the sealer in the penalty shootout to send Australia into the last eight of the tournament.

"When I went up, I thought if I hit it hard and I hit it in the corner, even if he chooses the right way, because he waits so late, he won't be able to save it," Leckie said of his decisive kick.

"In the end I ended up hitting it really, really hard, and really good. It was the perfect penalty at the perfect time."

Leckie had to clear a last-minute fitness test just to be kept in the squad before the tournament but the experienced winger said he always knew he'd be involved.

With Aaron Mooy, Daniel Arzani and Martin Boyle all ruled out pre-tournament, Leckie's return to action couldn't have come at a better time ahead of the Socceroos quarter-final with the host nation UAE in Al Ain on Friday (0300 Saturday AEDT).

"Arnie had to make a decision as well whether he wanted to take the risk with the spot on a player who isn't going to play in the group stage," Leckie said.

"In the end, so far, it's worked out well. It's still a long way in the tournament."