Once believing injuries would never let him reach a fourth World Cup, Mathew Leckie looms as Socceroos coach Tony Popovic's Swiss Army Knife: reliably doing any job, anywhere with brutal efficiency.
A lot had gone wrong for Leckie since his heroics at the Qatar World Cup in 2022, largely due to problematic hamstrings.
Before facing Mexico on Saturday, Melbourne City star Leckie last played for Australia against Palestine back in June 2024 and had never featured under Popovic.
He had hip surgery in December to alleviate his hamstring issues, before a monster A-League Men elimination final got Leckie into a training camp to push for selection.
"A couple of months ago, god knows what he was thinking in terms of his football with all the injuries that he's had," Popovic said.
