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After Mauricio Pochettino’s passionate half-time speech last October, the USA shaped up and started on the path to a rematch against the Australians in SeattleHaji Wright’s finish was cool, but Mauricio Pochettino’s reaction was cooler. It was the 35th minute of the US men’s national team’s friendly against Australia last October, and the Coventry City striker had just equalized after Jordan Bos put the Socceroos up earlier in the half. Wright celebrated by walking calmly away, while his coach had a blank expression on the sideline.Pochettino’s mind may have been on Australia’s aggressive approach, including one challenge that forced Christian Pulisic out of the match midway through the first half. Or he may have been focused on his team’s reaction.“[Pochettino] wasn’t too happy with letting them punch us in a way, without punching back,” Wright said this week. The Argentinian made his feelings known in a passionate half-time speech, captured in part on a recent docuseries covering the team’s journey to the World Cup. The pep talk was forceful enough to have had an impact even on the players who did not hear it first-hand.“You could tell by the reaction of the guys,” said Brenden Aaronson, who was out on the field warming up to come on as a sub during the speech. The US matched Australia’s intensity in the second half, securing the first of three straight wins that sent them into 2026 with positive momentum.“Even though he’s Argentinian, he has that mindset of like, look, this is what we do, you know, and this is who we are, and this is what America’s about,” Sebastian Berhalter said. “We’re American, and we don’t take shit.”Now, almost exactly eight months after that last meeting between the teams, the US and Australia meet again on Friday on soccer’s grandest stage.The World Cup, of course, is a different beast than a friendly, no matter how intense the competition may have been. The US starting lineup is sure to look different – the only holdovers from that friendly in the World Cup opener against Paraguay were Weston McKennie in midfield, Chris Richards anchoring the backline, and Matt Freese in goal. Cristian Roldan assisted Wright on both goals in the friendly; it would be a surprise if either player starts on Friday, even with the game coming in Seattle, where Roldan is a favorite among the fans of his MLS team, the Sounders.Australia, meanwhile, saw just four changes between that friendly and last week’s win against Turkey. Leicester City center-back Harry Souttar captained the side after missing the friendly, Patrick Beach enjoyed a standout performance in goal after replacing longtime incumbent Mathew Ryan, Paul Okon-Engstler comes into midfield, and Mo Touré starts up top instead of Nick D’Agostino.The personnel that remain, though, highlight the areas the US may once again find dangerous. Nestory Irankunda, who knifed through the US defense on a few occasions last October, had a great start to his World Cup with a goal and a Man of the Match award in the win over Turkey. His pace on the counter was cited by multiple US players as a primary danger this week, along with Australia’s comfort without the ball. The Socceroos held just 30% of possession against Turkey, but were able to cause danger against the run of play consistently – a slightly different approach than the one they employed in October.“Speaking to the boys who played in October, they said the game against Turkey looked completely different than how they played them last camp,” Antonee Robinson said.“To me, it seems like they’re more fine tuned,” Wright said. “They looked really good defensively. They look really stable. They didn’t look like Turkey were able to really get behind them very much. That’ll be a challenge for us to break them down.”Midfielder Tyler Adams called the match “one of the most difficult games we’ll play,” adding that Australia are “combative,” “smart,” and “unbelievably tactically sound.”The challenge now, then, is for the US to match Australia’s aggression just as they did after half-time in the teams’ last meeting.“You could see that they were up for it, and they were putting in challenges, and I think that’s when Mauricio had the half-time rant,” said Berhalter, who was not a part of the team that day but noticed a striking similarity between the US and the Socceroos. “You like teams that have that brotherhood, you like teams that, when you go against them, you can see, they’re hungry and that they want to fight. It makes you, you know, raise your level that much more.”

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The Socceroos and United States both made a fast start to their campaign – here is what the Group D rivals must do to maintain momentum in SeattleBack Nestory Irankunda: the 20-year-old was expected to be an impact player at this World Cup, coming on as a substitute to affect matches against tiring opposition. A player of the match performance when starting against Turkey showed how Irankunda has become one of the Socceroos’ most important players. While still learning his wing-craft, his speed and determination without the ball are vital in a Socceroos outfit seemingly happy to give their opponents’ possession, and his ability to make the most of transition and direct opportunities – as seen for his opening goal against Turkey – can be a superpower.Bring in the reinforcements: Australia used five substitutions against Turkey, including three when it was still 1-0. In a squad with few standout players, Australia will be wise to spread around the physical load of the tournament with one eye on the knockout rounds. This week’s health concerns for midfielder Aiden O’Neill – only able to walk the day after the Turkey game – and Mo Touré, whose calf keeps Socceroos fans up at night, underscore the need for rotation. The striker in particular is a vital player for the Socceroos, given his anticipation and pace make him the primary outlet when the defence is under pressure with the ball.Play for the draw: one point will almost certainly secure a place in the round of 32 for the Socceroos ahead of the third pool match against Paraguay, widely seen as the weakest team in Group D and the least equipped to chase a result. Yet it would also leave Australia in the box seat to go through as group winners, as they would just need to eclipse the result recorded by the United States in their final match against a motivated Turkey. Securing top spot in the group means the Socceroos stay in the San Francisco Bay Area for the round of 32 and play one of the third-placed finishers from the other groups. The Socceroos already have a setup to murder a football spectacle, now they also have the motive.Midfield rotations are key: this is the kind of thing that any USMNT fan would have known before last week’s fantastic opener, but the nature of the US’s play in that game made it especially so. Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro took time in his presser to specifically compliment the starting trio of Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams and Malik Tillman, whom he described as “floating” and a key part of a “pentagon” of play. For as well as Australia played against Turkey, they did not dictate the tempo, conceding more than 70% of possession and getting overrun in the centre of the park. If the US are going to do something with similar levels of possession, they’ll need their midfield to continue rotating effectively to help pull the Socceroos’ back two lines out of shape, manufacturing gaps in what had proven to be an airtight defence.Don’t get carried away: after the US’s emphatic opening statement, fans were over the moon, and journalists (including us) speculated that it may well have been the team’s best game at a men’s World Cup. That is, of course, those people’s jobs. But so far, US players and head coach Mauricio Pochettino haven’t been buying into it publicly. Immediately after the game, Pochettino stressed that the 4-1 win was just the beginning. All week in training, players have spoken about how they see this Friday’s match as a tough test. Given the degree to which the Socceroos stunned Turkey, the US would do well to keep doing privately what they have done publicly: prepare for what could easily be a very different type of game from the one they enjoyed at Los Angeles Stadium last week.Score early (if you can): Australia’s calling card is their organised defence, their intensity and the knowledge that they would always be up for a physical battle. Funny thing is, those exact same traits could also have been said about Paraguay, a team who conceded just 10 goals over the 18-game Conmebol qualifying gauntlet and survived because they scored just enough (14 times) to get results when needed. Last week, that plan was dashed with a seventh-minute own goal from Damián Bobadilla. No longer could Paraguay hope to sit back and absorb pressure – they had to press higher, which opened gaps in the midfield. Getting on the scoreboard early will not only ignite what is sure to be a raucous environment in Seattle, it will force Australia to come out of their defensive shell slightly more than they may be comfortable doing.

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Now that he’s older, the striker say he better understands what his family went through on their refugee journey from war-torn Liberia to AustraliaThe stories of these Socceroos can be traced back through grassy fields around Australia in the 1990s and 2000s, when 20 or so wide-eyed young footballers were just coming to terms with the ball. There were games, goalposts, quartered oranges. Old teammates, new boots. Season-to-season, year-on-year.Their progression to the international arena is a secret recipe countries have spent millions of dollars trying to perfect, with flashy academies and talent identification programs. Consultants within elite football call this the talent pathway.But go back further, to where one Socceroo’s story begins, and there is no path.Amara and Mawa Touré – parents of striker Mo Touré – were children when war broke out in Liberia in 1989. “Everything went helter-skelter, and every Liberian started running for their life,” Amara says.Amara, his little brother and adult sister walked for 18 days to make it to the border with Guinea. They survived on ripening wild fruit and vegetables, with a warning to avoid anyone they came across. “It was a scary time,” he says.“But now when I reflect on it, it would have been even scarier if I knew the ramifications of what we were going through. Because it was life or death.”Amara spent almost 14 years in Guinea. Initially he was supported by UNHCR and given essentials like food, a tent and a mosquito net. He moved from the refugee camp to marginally improved conditions in the broader community, but his life remained constrained.“Football was everything for me,” he says. “When I walked on to the park, I felt that is where I got to demand my respect, and that’s where I felt good. So my sanctuary was only football.”Amara and Mawa met at age 20. Their first son Al Hassan was born, followed by Mohamed – now better known as “Mo” – before they travelled to Australia on humanitarian visas. Both brothers have become Socceroos.“Every parent wants one’s child to go into something that they like and they excel at,” Amara says. “So when I would see them playing football and they’re entertaining people, I can’t afford not to be happy.”Mo is wearing No 9 at this World Cup. “Wearing the Socceroo jersey represents freedom,” he says. “It was the land that gave us opportunity, that lent us a helping hand, so every time I just play, I play with freedom and I always remember how things could have been if we weren’t in Australia.”The four refugees within the Socceroos squad – Touré, Nestory Irankunda, Awer Mabil and Milos Degenek – have found themselves in the spotlight during the internationally celebrated refugee week, culminating in the United Nations’ world refugee day on Sunday.They have contributed to the Socceroos’ video promoting cultural diversity and Touré’s family are working with local charity Australia for UNHCR to support displaced people. That involves the retelling of the family’s trauma.The Socceroos striker says it’s something they do willingly. “It’s just something that happens and for us. It’s, I wouldn’t say normal, but it’s common. We see a lot of our family members or a lot of the African community have similar stories and everybody came and migrated to Australia in a different way. So we’re just happy to share our story and then people find out how we did it.”Mo was seven months old when he first arrived in Australia, in 2004. The family settled in Adelaide’s inner-west suburb of Croydon. “My early life in Australia, I thought it was good because I didn’t know better,” he says. “I can now see that there were times in my childhood where my parents struggled, but I was too young to really understand.”Sometimes others in the neighbourhood would be given possessions or treats while the Touré boys were left wanting. “I just thought it was them [his parents] punishing me or them not wanting to do it,” Mo says. “But now that I’m older, I understand the struggles, and the real reason why we didn’t have all these things was because simply it was hard. Life was hard at that time.”Ferrying around three young footballers – Al Hassan now plays for Sydney FC and younger brother Musa is at Mo’s former club Randers in Denmark – was not easy, either. Some years at least one of the boys would play every day of the week.“It would be raining, and my parents would be there, freezing, waiting for us to finish training,” Mo says. “When we were very young, they would take our boots off before we got in the car as they didn’t want mud in there. Oh man, the next day they [would have to] clean the car [anyway].”Australia is now grateful for their sacrifice. Al Hassan debuted for the Socceroos last year, when he took the field alongside his brother in a friendly against Venezuela. Though only Mo won selection for this World Cup, the family were in Vancouver to see him play a key role against Turkey. “This is our country now,” Amara says. “Wearing that green and gold and going there and fighting for that country, to me, is the greatest thing I can ever see them do.”

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Forward is one of four players who came to Australia as refugeesMabil has tried to be a ‘big brother’ to Mo Touré and Nestory IrankundaSocceroos forward Awer Mabil offered his trademark focus on Wednesday afternoon in Oakland speaking to the Australian media about this week’s clash against the United States. There was one distraction, however, he could not overcome.The winger lost his concentration when long-time SBS commentator David Basheer – in the US as part of the network’s coverage – asked a question during the press conference. “Sorry, David from SBS, right?” Mabil interjected. “I grew up watching you.”Mabil, the 30-year-old who is at his second World Cup, is one of the faces of this group of Socceroos. A refugee born in a Kenyan camp to South Sudanese parents, he told the story of his background as part of a video message about the team’s diversity that was released before the tournament.Mabil’s experience is similar to many migrant stories in Australia. “I forgot about your question, I just started reflecting,” he continued to Basheer, as the room burst out in laughter.“I grew up watching SBS as a kid, because it was free TV. So you doing the World Game, that’s where I used to see all of my highlights from all over the world of football,” he said. “So, first, thank you, you gave me good memories as a kid.”Basheer repeated his question, about the Socceroos’ younger players. Mabil said he has tried to be a “big brother” to the likes of Mo Touré and Nestory Irankunda – fellow refugees from Africa who grew up in Adelaide – as well as the other young players.“It’s something that’s special for me to see their growth over the last couple of years and their maturity has been amazing,” he said. “I can just only be there, allow them to be themselves, and protect them when they need protection.”The goal by Irankunda against Turkey became a lightning rod across Australia for positivity towards multiculturalism. It also triggered a new wave of those seeing, and then sharing, the video message released by the players the week before the tournament.The two-minute video began with the words of Mabil, and has now been shared widely on social media. “It was a moment to describe what Australia is, and Australia is a very multicultural country, and that’s what makes it the best country in the world, in my opinion,” Mabil said. “You have the whole world in one place and the Socceroos now are a representation of that. You have many different backgrounds representing one jersey.”The video was a simple collation of messages about where the Socceroos grew up and why they have pride in the jersey. “The reason why it went viral is because it was raw. It was not edited. It was just purely what the players wanted to say and all put together,” Mabil said. “It had an effect because individually Australians can feel and relate with it.”Coincidentally this week is celebrated globally as refugee week. Mabil said he wanted to thank Australia and do his best for a country that has taken in so many refugees over the years.“It’s a week that I would like to say to anybody that is misplaced all over the world that we are with you,” he said. “And we are on the world stage right now, a big tournament, and just to tell you everything is possible, so keep going.”

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From Christian Pulisic and Antonee Robinson to Sergiño Dest and Folarin Balogun, the Socceroos will have their hands full in the Group D clashIn the so-called “Battle of Seattle”, the Socceroos face a range of threats against the USA on Friday (Saturday AEST): physical, technical and tactical. A draw will almost certainly secure a place in the round of 32 for the Socceroos and, after their heroics against Turkey, Australia can rightfully feel this is a game they can win. To do so, they will need to neutralise the most dangerous components of the USA menace.The focal point of the USA attack, and the face of the team across many of the advertisements screening during the World Cup, Pulisic has become a consistent performer for AC Milan since the end of his up-and-down stint Chelsea in 2023.The 27-year-old operates in an inverted left wing role, leaving him the scope to cut inside when the team has possession or drive wide on counter-attacks. Both strategies were evident in his electric first half display against Paraguay.Pulisic suffered a knock in that game and came off at half-time, but is due to play against Australia. He will pose a challenge for Alessandro Circati on the right-side of the Socceroos’ three central defenders. The young defender will not always be marking the American, but will be responsible for ensuring the right full-back – likely Jacob Italiano – and the right-sided central midfielder – probably Aiden O’Neill – are on Pulisic watch.The problem for Circati and the others on the Socceroos’ right flank is that they cannot worry about just Pulisic. The preference of Mauricio Pochettino to use wingbacks – which is not dissimilar to Tony Popovic’s preferred system – means Robinson becomes an outlet in possession and an attacking complement to Pulisic on the left side.The Socceroos are likely to concede the bulk of possession to the tournament hosts, leaving Connor Metcalfe – set to be Australia’s right winger again – as the first line of defence against Robinson. The American finished last season strongly for Fulham, and offers pace, endurance and capacity to overlap in an area targeted by Switzerland in the World Cup warm-up game and Turkey at the weekend. They both clearly saw something they liked down Australia’s right.Unfortunately for the Socceroos, the USA pose threats on both flanks. Dest is a skilful right-sided wingback or winger who helped PSV to the Dutch title. His duel with Jordy Bos, Australia’s dangerous left full-back, is set to be the game’s most compelling one-on-one contest. The pair played each other twice in the Eredivisie last season, and Bos’s Feyenoord – who finished second in the league – were beaten on both occasions.Of course, they will not always face down each other in possession. Both players will also be marked at times by opposition midfielders, but Dest’s tendency to attack is likely to place him in the proximity of Bos more often than not. The Australian’s ability to gain possession behind Dest, and force the Americans onto the back foot, will help relieve pressure in what is likely to be a 100-minute-long assault from the hosts.The striker scored twice against Paraguay, including a gorgeous second which highlights the risk for Australia. Balogun’s speed will test Australia’s loping central defence, whether that’s Harry Souttar in the middle, or on the left where Cam Burgess or perhaps Lucas Herrington will be called upon.The Socceroos conceded a similar goal to Balogun’s second against the USA in their friendly last year, when a quick free-kick in midfield found Burgess napping. That time it was Haji Wright – a likely substitute on Friday – who cut in and scored. The danger will be even more intense with Balogun, who finished with 19 goals in all competitions for Monaco last season.The midfielder looms as a lock-pick against what is likely to be Australia’s low block, even if he comes off the bench as he did against Paraguay. Reyna has the technical ability to find spaces for him and his teammates in between the lines, and the polish to make the most of half chances. His finish against Paraguay, with the outside of his right foot, was a delight.Paraguay came into the World Cup with a similar reputation to the Socceroos, as conservative and physical opponents. Despite the Paraguayans’ outstanding defensive record in South American qualifying, they were dismantled by an irresistible American display in the first half last week.The USA players can take credit, but the foundation of their success was coach Pochettino. The Argentinian – whose tactical nous helped Tottenham to their first Champions League final in 2019 – is not afraid to tweak his system to exploit opponents’ weaknesses. That pragmatism, together with the technical flexibility and athleticism of his squad, mean Australia will need to be prepared for surprises. Or, hopefully, have some of their own.

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Former USMNT players have disparaged AustraliaAustralia and US face each other on FridayFormer US players, perhaps caught up in the swell of confidence brought about by the team’s 4-1 romp over Paraguay in their World Cup opener, have fired barbs at Australia, their next opponents. The Socceroos have fired back. And current US players are having none of it.“All this talk is just nonsense to me,” US winger Tim Weah told the media on Tuesday, seconds after rolling his eyes and giving an incredulous look when told about comments from US pundits describing Friday’s match as a “layup,” or that the Australian team itself is “average.”“When you look at the Australian team, they’re a young team that has a lot of fight, a lot of grit, and a lot of hunger, just like us,” Weah said. “We respect them in the same way that we respect any other opponent. I think it’s going to be a lovely game. I don’t know what the media is trying to do, but we’re not really focused on that.”The comments have come most directly from three former USMNT players. After the draw placed the US in Group D with Australia, Turkey and Paraguay, former US striker Landon Donovan called Australia coach Tony Popovic “smug,” adding “you can get back on the Qantas airplane and head back home, pal.”Fox Sports commentator and US World Cup veteran Alexi Lalas said Australia are “an average team by any measure, and certainly not a great team.” CBS Sports pundit Mike Grella, in comments that most inflamed the Socceroos, called Friday’s match a “layup” for the US.Australia’s players have taken note. “I mean, I’ve seen all the US stuff, and I’m just sick of it, to be honest I just am,” Metcalfe said this month. “Like all this talk – it’s just – let’s just wait for the game, whatever happens, happens.”Tyler Adams attempted to act as a peacemaker on Tuesday.“I don’t think any commentary helps anybody,” the US midfielder said. “It’s not going to be a layup. If anything, it’s going to be one of the most difficult games we play.”The US got a measure of what a match against Australia will be like in 2025, in a fiery 2-1 win in Colorado. That match, ostensibly a friendly, was notable for scuffles between the two sides – an experience that US players say has given them a preview of what’s to come.“That game in Colorado was fun,” said Weah, who started and went 64 minutes in that game. “It was aggressive, and I think from that game in Colorado we’ve changed a lot, and we’ve got a bit more aggressive as well … I’m someone who respects Australia a lot.”

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Paul Okon-Engstler’s emotions before making his World Cup debut for Australia belied the performance that followed against Turkey in VancouverLost in the celebrations of Australia’s victory over Turkey was its poignant opening and the image of young Paul Okon-Engstler, wiping away tears brought on by his World Cup debut.The 21-year-old was one of the surprises to be named in Tony Popovic’s starting XI, as the coach chose to leave veteran Jackson Irvine on the bench. To those watching on the broadcast, Okon-Engstler made an impact even before the first whistle, when his surging emotions underscored the enormity of the occasion.“I don’t know if you can call those tears,” he said after the match, offering a chuckle. “But yeah, obviously very, very emotional just for me and my family.”In the cavernous BC Place in Vancouver, as the broadcast cameras panned across the Socceroos during the anthem, Okon-Engstler was the most affected of all of the Australians. His eyes welled up and at the end, the midfielder wiped away the tears – or whatever they were – from his face.It was not the rousing bars of Advance Australia Fair that triggered him, however. “In the tunnel, honestly, just walking out and seeing all our fans and the noise and the crowd and just seeing all the Fifa signage… it really hit me that I’m at a World Cup and I’m at the highest stage that any footballer dreams of. Just so happy, I was stoked.”Okon-Engstler would go on to play a crucial role in the victory. His assist for Nestory Irankunda has been widely praised, but he proved a crucial cog in a Socceroos machine that prevented the highly-fancied Turkish players from getting a breakthrough. “The way we defended and we fought as a team was just so special and I think that this group has so much more left to show,” he said.His effectiveness was an endorsement for the A-League Men, where he has been a key contributor for runners-up Sydney FC over the past season. Even close observers of the domestic competition, however, may have been surprised by how comfortable he looked on football’s biggest stage.The performance also dismissed once and for all any allegations of nepotism, given his father – Paul Okon – is an assistant coach for the Socceroos. The 54-year-old was a star in Belgium for Club Brugge and played for Leeds and Middlesbrough in the Premier League during the 1990s.Okon Snr had an experience not dissimilar to his son’s in Vancouver. Following the second goal he shared an embrace with head coach Tony Popovic, his long-time Socceroos team-mate. It was an acknowledgment of his own arrival at the World Cup.“We go a long way back and he’s passionate, he’s emotional,” Popovic said. “For me, playing his son is special. I play him because he deserves to play. I love the kid. I’ve loved him since, well, 12 months ago when I first brought him in. I knew there was a special talent there and he proved it today. And it was just a special moment with two close friends embracing.”Popovic – two years younger than his long-time friend – held on as a player just long enough to be involved in the Socceroos’ 2006 Germany campaign, their first since 1974. Okon Snr was one of the fine Australian players of the 1990s who never got to play at a World Cup. The closest he came was the playoff loss against Uruguay in 2001.He told SBS he and his son shared their own moment before the game, but it was one of coach and player rather than father and son. “My chat with him would have been like the chat with any other player in the team, and that was: ‘You’ve got a job to do, make sure you do it, and we have full confidence in your ability, and now’s the moment you’ve been waiting for it for a long time. It’s what you’ve dreamed of’, Okon Snr said. “Of course, yeah. I just happened to be his father.”

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Goalscorer Connor Metcalfe ‘pretty knackered’ after late-night flightSocceroos back in Oakland to continue preparations for US gameSocceroos goalscorer Connor Metcalfe admitted he hadn’t had the greatest sleep since Australia’s opening World Cup victory over Turkey.“It’s crazy to score, to get the win. I mean, you couldn’t ask for a better start, could you?” he said, speaking back at the team’s training base in Oakland barely 22 hours after the historic scenes in Vancouver.“The amount of messages I’ve received, the fact that my family, my loved ones, could be there was super special, so [it is] a memory I’ll never forget.”The day after their victory, Socceroos players were still recovering, physically and emotionally, from an arduous evening and a full night of travel.The Socceroos bussed out of BC Place after midnight, straight to Vancouver airport for their flight back to Oakland after 2am. They did not get back to their rooms to sleep until 5am.“The game was pretty late in general and usually after games I struggle to sleep,” said Metcalfe. “It’s pretty unusual to fly straight back, especially being so late, but it’s probably better to get back as soon as possible.”The Socceroos already have one eye on the mouthwatering clash against tournament co-hosts the United States on Friday in Seattle (Saturday AEST). But for now, the focus is on recovery.“[I had] about four or five hours of sleep, I’m just pretty knackered to be honest, I need a good day off tomorrow and then get back into it,” Metcalfe said.His 75th-minute strike secured arguably the Socceroos’ greatest World Cup victory, against an opponent many had described as dark horses before the tournament.They did so with a starting line-up with an average age of 24. Defender Cam Burgess, at 30, was the oldest, after he was preferred to Lucas Herrington on the left side of the central defenders.Behind him was 22-year-old Patrick Beach in goal. Jordy Bos, 23, was to his left, Paul Okon-Engstler, 21, played ahead of him in midfield and 20-year-old Nestory Irankunda, who scored the opener, was on the left wing.“There’s nothing they really need to lean on me for,” Burgess said. “Obviously I might have to do that and I believe that’s a big part of my role in the team, to be the experienced one and to calm things down at times and just be a voice as well.“But those guys are on a good trajectory in their careers, and I think they showed last night what they can do.”At training on Sunday afternoon in Oakland (Monday morning AEST), Aiden O’Neill walked around the ground, as the starters ran light laps. He was described as “a little bit sore” by Metcalfe. The remainder of the squad played small sides games.O’Neill and Metcalfe were the only players – apart from the central defenders and Beach – who were not substituted.“Probably the last 15 minutes, I was looking over at the bench waiting for a sub, but I stuck out there and just had to dig deep,” he said.Recovery for the Socceroos this week will also be mental, but Burgess believes the group is sufficiently grounded to not get ahead of themselves.“It’s, I guess, the Aussie way, and it’s just instilled in us to take it one game at a time and enjoy the moment with your friends and family and teammates and just focus on the next [game] and work hard and go again.”Burgess was born in Scotland but spent his teens in Perth. He represented the country of his birth at junior levels, before committing to Australia in 2014.Alongside Harry Souttar – another Aberdeen-born Socceroo – Burgess watched Scotland’s first-up victory over Haiti, their first win at a World Cup in 36 years. Souttar’s brother John was on the bench for Scotland.Despite the emotion around Scotland’s World Cup return, Burgess said he had no regrets about committing to Australia.“I’m more than happy where I’m at right now,” he said. “What’s just gone on in the last 24 hours has been some of the best moments of my career so far and I just can’t wait to hopefully go out there and do it again.”

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Irankunda and co have not yet earned golden generation status but they can revive Australia’s World Cup aspirationsThere always was a familiar feeling to this youthful squad of Socceroos. That sense of deja vu. That you had seen something like this before. But it took Nestory Irankunda running to the corner flag to remember what it was.By reviving Tim Cahill’s famous goal celebration, the new face of Australian football instantly connected this fearless crop of young footballers finding their way on the world stage to the greats wearing yellow that have gone before.Beyond the celebration, the echoes were everywhere. The scorer was a 20-year-old, not yet born when John Aloisi scored the penalty against Uruguay in 2005. The coach, Tony Popovic, was a player in the Socceroos squad in Germany the following year. The 20-year anniversary of Cahill’s double against Japan was exactly two days ago, and these players marked it with a 2-0 win over Turkey.It all makes comparison hard to avoid. But do not misconstrue it: Irankunda and co have not yet earned the status of another golden generation. There is no Harry Kewell in this team, no Mark Viduka. They may get there, they may not. There is still much to prove, much to improve.The force that is stirring is harder to pin down, more difficult to define. That 2006 side brought Australia back to the World Cup after a long hiatus. They had talent, sure, but that Germany campaign was less action movie than mystery drama.What is the Socceroos’ ceiling on this, football’s grandest stage? Just how far could they go? Watching the agonising defeat to Italy in the last-16 game in Kaiserslautern, those were genuine thoughts among those in the crowd. Marco Materazzi had been sent off, Lucas Neill was capably marshalling the defence, and Guus Hiddink had saved two substitutions for the impending period of extra time.Of course, Fabio Grosso made those the great unanswerables of Australian football. A puzzle of pain returns every time that world champion Italy team pops up in another cursed flashback. Then again, with every World Cup that has since come and gone, a sobering thought has begun to take hold. Maybe this was the Socceroos’ ceiling, a World Cup hallway the height of the front door.Since then, there were the fading embers of that golden cohort, and a succession of forgettable national team coaches. There was the brief Ange Postecoglou tenure, its end serving only to deflate.This article means no disrespect. Over two decades there were successive successful World Cup qualification campaigns, achieved by solid professionals representing the Socceroos, with the odd Aaron Mooy to sustain the dreamers. But the downright newness of 2006 – its impact amplified by the team’s quality – was a hard act to follow.Each time the World Cup came around, the proposition became the same: avoid a thumping by the top-seeded team and disaster against the minnows. Then just beat Denmark. This was now life for the Socceroos in a tournament that over five successive appearances Australians had got to know perhaps too well.The infinite possibilities Australian fans felt in 2006 collapsed into a singular purpose. Please, just get out of the World Cup group.So when Graham Arnold – to his eternal credit – took the workmanlike squad of 2022 to the round of 16, it should have been a breakthrough, an emotional release. Like in 2006, their exit was noble. Against eventual champions Argentina it finished 2-1, and Garang Kuol’s late chance snuggled in next to Grosso’s trailing leg in the pantheons of Socceroos’ what-ifs.Yet that team is not celebrated like their predecessors of 2006. They were over-achievers, who had little more to give. The Socceroos were by now stratified into the suffocating middle class of football, with World Cups like another working week. A numbness had taken hold.Where had Australian football’s hope gone? Where was the wonder? What was left of its imagination?The Socceroos’ World Cup script, it turns out, is not pre-written. On this night of shocks in Vancouver, Popovic dropped his captain, and left out his de facto vice-captain. Then Irankunda scurried away onto an exquisite pass, producing one delicious touch then a finish.Patrick Beach threw himself to his right to divert aside a searing drive. Block after block followed, save after save. A brief interlude featuring a stunner from Connor Metcalfe. Then more blocks, more saves as Vancouver’s yellow swarm – and millions back home – began to feel World Cup wonder again.This XI was a team with an average age of 24.6 years – almost 12 months younger than the next youngest lineup the Socceroos have selected at a World Cup. Popovic, a coach known to be conservative, was suddenly a man taking risks. The gambles paid off to deliver a result against Turkey, by far Australia’s biggest victory in the World Cup. It’s not hard to calculate: there have been only five.This is a new World Cup formula for the Socceroos. They boast a plethora of emerging stars, all with Premier League potential. There is Irankunda the supernova. The multifactorial Mo Touré. Jordy Bos, bossing the left. Alessandro Circati, hot-headed but still a cool customer. Now Paul Okon-Engstler and Beach.They may not end up eclipsing the round of 16 efforts of 2006 and 2022, but right now it doesn’t matter. Like that 2006 side of Kewell and Viduka, these Socceroos have started something. A new World Cup adventure has begun.