Of course Tony Popovic would say “it should be a very exciting group for the Australian public” about the 26 Socceroos he has selected for this month’s World Cup, as he did on Monday. The leader of Australia’s North American adventure needs to at least appear to believe in his squad, to have their backs, as this unproven group prepares for the challenges of a prickly Group D.
But, by jingo, he might just be right. These players are oozing with skill and potential, bursting with the enthusiasm of youth. This fresh aroma was topped off by the surprise of uncapped attackers Cristian Volpato and Tete Yengi edging out more experienced options in a daring selection for a coach not known to take risks.
Run through the squad list and the argument builds. At 22, Alessandro Circati is already a sumptuous defender, Serie A-proven. Mo Touré is elusive and crafty, who seems to have discovered the recipe for goals. Nestory Irankunda is an explosive talent who could be anything.
From nowhere there is now teenager Lucas Herrington, who has managed to win the trust of Popovic, a former central defender himself. “It is quite special at 18 to be doing what he’s doing,” the Socceroos coach said.
Paul Okon-Engstler shows the grace and drive of a midfielder 10 years his senior. “He hasn’t reached, I believe, half of what he could reach,” Popovic said. “His improvement over 12 months has been significant.”
Perhaps the best of the bunch, however, is Jordy Bos. Perfectly suited to Popovic’s wingback system, the 23-year-old is already one of the finest left full-backs in Holland. The tournament is set to be his Cape Canaveral, and the stratosphere beckons.
Popovic described this generation as without fear, mostly. “I’d like them to be more fearless than what they are, because sometimes that comes with experience, that when the pressure’s on, they go in their shell a little bit,” he said. “And then when they do two or three good actions, you can just see them open up and relax and off they go.”
Exhilaration is temptation, reality is something different. Against more polished professionals of Turkey and the USA, this young cohort will be tested. They remain far from favourites to go through from their group. Mediocrity, as is generally the tradition for Australia at World Cups, is the most likely outcome.
Indeed, a World Cup does not often go to plan. The first act upon the team’s arrival at their Oakland base on Monday ended in failure. The planned livestream of Popovic discussing the squad was canned, even as hundreds of Socceroos fans waited patiently on YouTube. The cause was the venue’s wi-fi, a reminder that for all the money and planning Football Australia has invested into this group, surprises cannot be eliminated.
How they handle them will be part of what makes the coming weeks compelling. Watching the best emerging crop of Australian players in a generation tackle a World Cup campaign offers a sense of wonder, of what-might-be, that goes beyond the rarity of the peak of the four-year cycle. A World Cup is exciting; this one doesn’t involve starting Mitch Duke.
The young players are complemented by respected veterans in captain Mat Ryan, Jackson Irvine, Harry Souttar and Mat Leckie. The latter was the hero of Qatar after his goal against Denmark. He was all but ruled out, even by his own club manager Aurelio Vidmar, just one month ago. Popovic was of similar mind: “A couple of months ago, God knows what he was thinking in terms of his football with all the injuries that he’s had,” he said. “He’s obviously stayed very true to himself, in terms of his fitness and staying strong.”
Popovic has already tried to distil a spirit of possibility among the squad, allowing a degree of authenticity to their ambition. The players parrot his mantra of “why not us” when the topic shifts to these intangibles. The coach invited Socceroos fans to share it on Monday. “I don’t need anyone to dampen their expectation,” he said. “They should believe, they should love to see these boys play and have the mix of the experience and the youngsters.”
As was seen in the first half against Mexico – and, indeed, in Monday’s livestream fail – Popovic and these players won’t always get it right. In all likelihood the Socceroos will stutter through the group stage and leave us all processing permutations as the clock ticks down against Paraguay. Then again, they might meet our expectations. Heck, they might even exceed them.
