Articles by Marco Monteverde

Sports

Socceroos coach explains shock squad choices

Not for the first time in his Socceroos tenure, Popovic has raised eyebrows with some of the players he has chosen in his squad for the upcoming games against Venezuela (Saturday, Houston) and Colombia (Wednesday week, New York). Among the biggest selection shocks in the 26-man squad named last Friday were teenage defender James Overy, who plays for Manchester United’s youth team, Melbourne City’s 22-year-old goalkeeper, and Poland-based striker Deni Juric. “Maybe for you guys, it’s surprising some of the selections, but I’ve said many times, we will search everywhere,” Popovic said on Monday. “We watch all the players, even when they think that we’re not watching, We’re aware of how they’re playing and what form they’re in. “If they’re in the squad now, they’re a chance for the World Cup. Yes, there are some players that obviously can be more long-term prospects, can be prospects for after the World Cup, maybe the (2027) Asian Cup, and certainly the next cycle, but that doesn’t rule them out of this World Cup coming up.” They include 18-year-old Perth product Overy, whose selection was perhaps also aided by three defenders – Jordan Bos, Jacob Italiano and Alessandro Circati – being injured. Popovic watched Overy represent Australia at this year’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Chile and liked what he saw. “I knew what he could do. Watching him closely in Chile, I was impressed, in particular, coming in, playing (Australia’s) second match, and … starting at left back, he showed a lot of composure, a lot of maturity for his age. “Then he went to the right (side of defence) in the third game, and then we started really monitoring him. “We have good contacts at Man United, so we know what he’s doing at training. We know how much he trains with the first team. He’s getting games in the under 18s, and the under 21s, and I just thought he was worth having a look at. “I’m very open-minded with what that looks like for the immediate future and obviously long term.” Popovic had similar high hopes for the uncapped Beach, who was selected at the expense of Joe Gauci to be among the three keepers in the squad with skipper Mat Ryan and Paul Izzo. “He (Beach) has been playing very well. He’s gaining more experience, more maturity, and there’s a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, and he’s handling that well,” the Socceroos boss said. “He’s dealing with the three (A-League and AFC Champions League Elite) games in a week which Melbourne City have had. “I want to see him. I want to see him with us, and at the moment, he’s ahead of the other keepers (not in the squad), and that’s what we want. We want competition. “Players know that if you perform, you give yourself a chance and they can see with us that everyone can get a chance to come into camp. “The players that miss out, we haven’t forgotten them. We will keep watching them, and we’ll see when it gets to that time to select a squad who we believe is ahead in the pecking order at that time, (and they) will go to the World Cup.” Popovic said Juric, the 28-year-old younger brother of former Socceroos marksman Tomi Juric, had a “very good physical profile”. “He was playing in Slovenia. There he was scoring so many goals, but the level of the league is quite low, so it was very hard to judge, but we’ve watched him now since he’s gone to Poland (to play for Wisła Płock), and he looks quicker, he looks more powerful and definitely looks fitter,” Popovic said. “He’s scoring goals, assisting goals, and he’s in a team that’s challenging for the title at the moment. It’s maybe not a league that everyone sees regularly, so they’re not aware of how he’s playing, but he deserves his opportunity.”