Why Tony Popovic’s latest Socceroos squad is the most exciting in years

In March, Noah Botic, Adrian Segecic and Nicolas Milanovic all celebrated goals in the A-League with none-too-subtle gestures towards Popovic, who had overlooked them for selection in that window. All three have since moved to clubs in Europe and, to varying degrees, made good starts to the new season. Segecic, in particular, has become an instant fan favourite at Portsmouth. All three have been rewarded with selection. Adrian Segecic has made a terrific start to life in England with Portsmouth. Credit: Getty Images Botic is one of only two out-and-out strikers in the squad; the other, Mohamed Toure, has blossomed since lighting up the A-League as a teenager with Adelaide United, cutting his teeth in France before a switch to Danish club Randers. He’s still only 21, and his potential is sky-high. Speaking of Adelaide - of course, Nestory Irankunda is back, fresh from scoring a worldie of a free kick for English Championship side Watford, who appear to have built their team to extract the maximum out of his breathtaking abilities.

Popovic started him in his first match in charge of the Socceroos but his error-riddled performance made it clear that he was still too raw for international football - or, at least, the cut-throat qualifying environment. Fast forward almost a year, and Irankunda is 19, and as ready as he’ll ever be to step up to the level. “It’ll be nice to see him,” Popovic said. “Since that time, we’ve seen him probably mature as a player. He’s had a year in Europe, which is a great experience for a young player - Bayern Munich, which obviously shows the talent that he has. He got some game-time at Grasshoppers in Switzerland and now we’re seeing him progress further at Watford. “We know he certainly has the talent and he’s young. He’s still got the potential. He’s still maturing and getting better. We hope to see him in two, three, four World Cups to come.”

The prospect of a frontline featuring any three of those players? Alongside more established players like Martin Boyle, Connor Metcalfe and the mercurial Ajdin Hrustic, who has also earned a recall? With a midfield behind them featuring the likes of the Max Balard, Ryan Teague, Aiden O’Neill and Patrick Yazbek? Or even Anthony Kalik, the former A-League squaddie who wasn’t really on anyone’s radar, but has spent the past five years in Croatia, and has clearly done something there to pique Popovic’s interest? Mohamed Toure lit up the A-League years ago - and he’s stepped up his game in Europe since. Credit: Getty Images Not to mention an overlapping Jordan Bos, now past his injury troubles and now at Feyenoord, one of the biggest clubs in the Netherlands? It’s all very tantalising.

“I’m anticipating it will be a big jump for them, but I also believe that’s how it should be,” Popovic said of what the new faces can expect. “It should be difficult, it should be challenging. Wanting to play for the Socceroos should be the ultimate goal for every player. I’m interested to see how these players can deal with that. It may be that some of these young boys don’t quite grasp it now, but there are more windows to come.” Out-of-season A-League Men players have been overlooked for this camp, while skipper Maty Ryan has been left out, having only just sealed a contract with La Liga outfit Levante UD in recent days - which means Australia’s back-up goalkeepers Joe Gauci, Tom Glover and Paul Izzo have a big opportunity. “We want to see who can step up under the pressure that Maty’s very used to playing for his country, and we need to increase the depth and the quality of the squad,” Popovic said. “Part of this is obviously getting some new players in, rewarding them for their good form, but we want to have a lot of depth going into the World Cup, and we want to have selection headaches. I hope I have those come June.”

Socceroos regulars Jackson Irvine, Harry Souttar, Riley McGree and Jason Geria, meanwhile, are all injured. Veteran midfielder Massimo Luongo had also mounted a case for selection since his switch to English second-tier side Millwall but his status is unclear; he retired from international duty in December 2023 but was called up by Popovic last October, only to miss that window due to injury. Instinct may be to sneer at the Kiwis, and assume they should be pushovers, but that would be wrong. New Zealand is also enjoying a footballing renaissance of sorts, and their squad is also packed with interesting young players - and it’s headlined by Nottingham Forest’s Chris Wood, one of the Premier League’s most in-form strikers, who will be more than a handful for Australia’s defence. These trans-Tasman friendlies will be just the second time that the Soccer Ashes will be contested since the long-lost trophy was discovered in the garage of a former administrator’s son, solving a 69-year mystery. “I don’t really like that word, to be honest: friendly,” Popovic said.

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