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

The moment Tony Popovic eventually brought together his initial Socceroos squad, the recently appointed coach detailed a set of expectations. The majority were straightforward and concise – ideal in light of the turmoil around his sudden entry, after Graham Arnold’s departure, and with under three weeks to make arrangements for crucial 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic insisted that any player who aspired to represent in a Socceroos shirt would need to embrace an “premier” mentality to secure, or continue to earn that honour. But there was a further message. Less a demand and an invitation to excel – and one that has been thrown sharper into focus with any step taken on the journey towards the World Cup in North America.

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

Approximately a year on from that team talk in an Adelaide hotel, plenty of other things have evolved, even if Popovic’s ambitions remain the same. The coach, for one, seems really settled as Socceroos manager. The 52-year-old’s image for discipline differs greatly with the approachable and at times jovial figure speaking freely for over an hour in what have become frequent sit-downs with football media. So too have the fortunes of his team improved, with recollections of a setback to Bahrain and stalemate with Indonesia appearing fairly far off after victories over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June guaranteed the Socceroos’ berth in next year’s worldwide tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game winning streak under Popovic, one that was only broken away by the United States earlier this month. It’s momentum that has taken the Socceroos to the unexpected precipice of entering pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November exhibition games against Venezuela, currently placed 50th in the world, and 13th-ranked Colombia – as well as Ecuador’s games against Canada and New Zealand, and the final games of European qualifying – loom large in this regard.

While Popovic concedes that he arrived in the job expecting to only be able to count on a main squad of players, he now feels the group he can trust has swelled. This is not only through the rise of youngsters such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as genuine international players. There are also the likes of Miloš Degenek’s comeback from the sidelines and Paul Izzo’s blossoming into a bona fide Socceroos keeper with the potential to push Maty Ryan.

“The squad has totally changed in my mind – of what’s achievable with players that have come in,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t really have much beyond this. Just make it work and make them better.’ Now, I believe like there are 15, 20 players that have come into that, and I’m convinced there are others to come that I believe can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This surprising emergence of talent, and the transformation in thinking it has inspired in Popovic, has created opportunities for players on the edges of the squad. Even those not yet considered among those group can remain optimistic that, come June next year, they could be on the flight. A player like Adrian Segečić might be about to miss a month of playing due to an ankle injury, but if he – or any other player – continues to play regularly, then the coach is emphasizing they’re in with a shot of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a limit or a stop on that – to declare 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 one more player that steps up in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, leads back to Popovic’s initial address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to impress him, to do something special and rise above the predictions others have for them, he wants his team to have the same philosophy.

“Saying I want to do something exceptional is just ‘we don’t want to have limits’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to confine ourselves into ‘let’s be participants at the World Cup, and let’s go home and pat each other on the back for being there’.

“I keep saying it to the group: one day, Australia will go deep in the World Cup. And why not this group? Why do we have to wait two or three World Cups, when I’m observing and cheering something remarkable from the Socceroos? Why should we have limits? Why not do it now?”