{‘Why do we have to wait?’: Popovic places no boundaries on what Australia can accomplish.

As soon as Tony Popovic eventually brought together his maiden Socceroos squad, the recently appointed coach presented a set of expectations. A lot were clear and to the point – ideal given the turmoil surrounding his sudden appointment, following Graham Arnold’s exit, and with fewer than three weeks to prepare for vital 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic asserted that any player who aspired to wear a Socceroos shirt would need to embrace an “elite” attitude to secure, or maintain that honour. But there was another theme. Not so much an order and an invitation to excel – and one that has been brought clearer into view with each step taken on the journey towards the World Cup in North America.

“My hopes were to do something extraordinary, in my introductory talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That hasn’t changed.”

Just over a year on from that team talk in an Adelaide hotel, a lot of other things have changed, even if Popovic’s ambitions remain the same. The coach, for one, looks genuinely settled as Socceroos head. The 52-year-old’s reputation for austerity sharply contrasts with the approachable and at times light-hearted figure holding court for over an hour in what have become frequent sit-downs with football media. So too have the results of his team changed, with memories of a loss to Bahrain and stalemate with Indonesia appearing rather far off after wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June secured the Socceroos’ berth in next year’s global tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game unbeaten run under Popovic, one that was only ended away by the United States earlier this month. It’s form that has taken the Socceroos to the surprising precipice of entering pot two in the World Cup draw. The performances of November friendlies against Venezuela, currently positioned 50th in the world, and 13th-ranked Colombia – as well as Ecuador’s games against Canada and New Zealand, and the last games of European qualifying – loom large in this regard.

Although Popovic admits that he arrived in the job thinking to only be able to rely on a key players of players, he now believes the selection he can trust has grown. This is not only through the breakthrough of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as genuine international players. There are also the examples of Miloš Degenek’s reappearance from the sidelines and Paul Izzo’s growth into a bona fide Socceroos keeper with the potential to compete with Maty Ryan.

“The squad has entirely changed in my mind – of what’s possible with players that have joined,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t really have much outside of this. Just manage and make them better.’ Now, I think like there are 15, 20 players that have come into that, and I’m sure there are additional ones to come that I trust can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This surprising emergence of talent, and the change in outlook it has sparked in Popovic, has created opportunities for players on the edges of the squad. Even those not yet viewed amongst those group can hold out hope that, by June next year, they could be on the plane. A player like Adrian Segečić might be about to sit out a month of playing due to an ankle injury, but if he – or any other player – continues to deliver regularly, then the coach is making clear they’re every chance of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a limit or a end on that – to reveal in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more inclusions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to feel that they have an possibility. Why can’t there be an additional player that steps up in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, leads back to Popovic’s first talk as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to exceed expectations him, to do something outstanding and rise above the hopes others have for them, he wants his team to have the same philosophy.

“Saying I want to do something unique is just ‘we don’t want to have boundaries’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to confine ourselves into ‘let’s be contenders at the World Cup, and let’s go home and celebrate for being there’.

“I repeat it to the group: one day, Australia will go a long way in the World Cup. And why not this group? Why do we have to wait two or three World Cups, when I’m sitting back and applauding something exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”