Little-known defender Tomislav Mrcela could be one of the new faces Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou names for next month's crucial World Cup warm-up match against Ecuador.
The towering centre-back plays in Croatia's top tier for Hrvatski Dragovoljac and told local media overnight he'd been informed Postecoglou had him in his sights.
The 23-year-old West Australian has played for various clubs in Croatia since 2009 and said he was surprised when Socceroos team manager Gary Moretti called him after his side's 2-1 loss to Hajduk Split on Saturday, in which he scored the consolation goal, to say Postecoglou was tracking his progress.
"He praised my performance, congratulated me on the goal and he surprised me with a statement that they have for some time followed my game and it could easily happen that soon get a call from Ange Postecoglou," Mrcela said.
Postecoglou will next week name his squad for the March 5 friendly against the South Americans in London and said he will be including some new players.
With Rhys Williams injured and skipper Lucas Neill still club-less Postecoglou is lacking options at centre-back playing regularly at a high level.
Mrcela says while he's not packing his bags for Brazil just yet he feels he could be in line for his first Socceroos call-up.
"I'm just on a broader list at the moment," he said.
"But I read in the Australian media that the coach said there will be some surprises, so who knows?
"I hope I get the chance."
Postecoglou is currently in Brazil for a World Cup coaches' conference and to inspect the Socceroos' training facilities in Vitoria.
Having recently returned from a scouting trip in Europe, Postecoglou indicated he would include some players in his next squad who impressed him there while various A-League players also look likely to get the nod.
Postecoglou said the Ecuador game will be his final chance to experiment with new players before he settles on his extended World Cup squad in May.
