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TRANSCRIPT
Crunch time is near for the Socceroos- and it's time for coach Tony Popovic to make some hard decisions.
From dozens and dozens of hopefuls, at the end of the month, he'll have to pick just 26 for Australia's World Cup squad.
Popovic admits he's got most of the squad already picked in his head, but has to wait on some players who have injury worries.
“I think due to those players that you're not sure of where they are physically, and how they will be come the end of May... maybe 70 or 80 per cent.”
Players he'll be watching in that regard are the likes of Harry Souttar, one of the heroes of the last World Cup four years ago, who is coming off a long-term injury... and midfield mainstay Aiden O'Neill, who injured his ankle playing for his club last weekend.
Popovic this week departs for a training camp in Sarasota in the U-S state of Florida.
He'll take eight World Cup hopefuls with him, players whose club seasons are already over.
They are: Souttar, Mat Leckie, Mitch Duke, Hayden Matthews, Anthony Caceres, Brandon Borrello, Nick D'Agostino and Nishan Velupillay.
Popovic says World Cup hopefuls will be aided in their case for the final 26 if they can play more than one position.
He points to young attacker Nestory Irankunda as a perfect example.
“We have, obviously, a fair idea on how many we would like in each position. The versatility helps. We have always had that. And we have that across the board. Let's talk about Nestor. He can play anywhere across the front line. And without any training, he played up front for us as a lone striker, and was wonderful, in March. The more players we have like that, the better.”
These Socceroos don't have the star power of previous squads, particularly in attack.
But Popovic says he's excited about young striker Mo Toure, who could lead the line for Australia in North America.
The 22-year-old, who started life as Liberian refugee in Guinea before moving to Adelaide when he was eight months old, has been in great form for his new club side, Norwich City in England's second-tier, since a mid-season move.
“Yeah, exciting... obviously, I know that league very well, and I've seen a lot of the games that he's played, and he looks full of confidence. His team has played really well in the second half of the year. So, they've done a great job, and that has really helped him to settle in quickly, scoring early. So, he's full on confidence, and I look forward to seeing him soon.”
Popovic says the early-comers to the Socceroos pre-tournament camp can expect a big focus on physical fitness.
“Yeah, well, there is a process and a plan. We can't just flog the players next week, and say they will be ready. We have to take into account where they're at right now, the limited amount of football that they have played. But by coming in early, we can give them anywhere between three to four weeks coming up, getting them to those physical levels that are the best that they can be as an individual.”
Popovic, who played in Australia's memorable 2006 World Cup campaign, has inherited a team coming off a another memorable World Cup run in Qatar four years ago.
Victories over Denmark and Tunisia got Australia out of the group stage for just the second time ever... and into a Round of 16 game against eventual world champions Argentina that the Aussies only lost by the barest of margins.
It, of course, begs the question of what an acceptable performance is this time around.
The expansion of the tournament to 48 teams gives a more forgiving format, where 32 teams go to the knockout stage instead of 16.
The draw was also reasonably kind.
Whilst none of co-hosts the United States, Turkiye, and Paraguay are pushovers... none of these Group D foes Australia will play is a superpower, either.
Popovic is ambitious for his men, but is being careful about being too explicit in public about what his goals are.
This is how he puts it as to what an acceptable performance would be.
“I think to show that we are very competitive in every game. I don't want to put what's a pass mark, or what's something that we aspire as saying: yep, we've achieved. I've said from day one: why not this group to do something special? And we will go into the tournament with that mindset. Can it be us that does something special, and goes further than Australia ever has before?”
When asked what the main difference is between Graham Arnold's 2022 squad and his 2026 men... Popovic prefers to focus on similarities... particularly when it comes to public reaction to the team.
“I'd just like to see the same passion and support that we saw at the last World Cup. We pushed Argentina to the wire, and we can't underestimate how close we were to really doing something extraordinary in that game. And the whole country was behind Australia. Every Australian living outside of Australia was behind them, and getting up at all kinds of hours to watch. We just want that again. We want that support. We have an exciting group.”
The World Cup is never just about what happens on the field- and this is particularly the case this time around, with the multitude of controversies that swirl around life in Donald Trump's United States.
Popovic says he's not concerned about the political climate in the U-S, and has brushed off recent remarks by star midfielder Jackson Irvine critical of Mr Trump.
Popovic says he'd welcome Mr Trump's attendance at Australia's match against the United States on the 20th of June in Seattle.
On a more football-related plane, there's been plenty of criticism of high ticket prices and other associated costs for fans wanting to travel to the US for the tournament.
Popovic says he sympathises with supporters.
“Yeah, if that's the reason they can't go... it's hard for fans. Because they spend a lot of time supporting the game, or supporting sport... and when you put into the calculations the flights and ticket prices collectively, and staying in hotels... it's not easy. Obviously it's not easy. But the ones who can't make it for those financial reasons... I hope that they find a nice spot to watch the games on TV, and have a nice drink, and watch Australia, and hopefully, at the end of that game, they're very proud Australians after seeing us play.”
By the the 11th of May, Popovic must privately submit a provisional squad list of up to 55 players to FIFA.
That has to be trimmed to the final 26 by June the 1st.
These 26 players will be based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with Australia training in nearby Oakland throughout the tournament.
Australia will play two warm-up matches before the tournament starts- against Mexico in Los Angeles on May the 31st, and Switzerland in San Diego on the 7th of June.
Australia will start their campaign on the 14th of June against Turkiye in Vancouver.
They'll then play the United States on the 20th of June in Seattle, before finishing the group stage against Paraguay in Santa Clara on the 26th of June.
The top two teams in each group, plus the eight best third-placed teams, advance to the single-elimination knockout stage.
All 104 games of the 2026 FIFA World Cup are live and exclusive on SBS.
