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As soon as Tony Popovic at last gathered his maiden Socceroos squad, the new coach detailed a series of expectations. A lot were straightforward and to the point – suitable in light of the turmoil around his unexpected entry, after Graham Arnold’s resignation, and with less than three weeks to prepare for crucial 2026 World Cup fixtures against China and Japan.

Popovic asserted that any player who aimed to pull on a Socceroos shirt would need to embrace an “top-tier” attitude to deserve, or keep that honour. But there was another message. Less a demand and a call to greatness – and one that has been cast clearer into perspective with any step taken on the road towards the World Cup in North America.

“My visions were to do something remarkable, in my first talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That hasn’t changed.”

Approximately a year on from that meeting in an Adelaide hotel, a lot of other things have changed, even if Popovic’s goals are the same. The coach, for one, appears truly comfortable as Socceroos manager. The 52-year-old’s standing for strictness sharply contrasts with the expansive and at times cheerful figure engaging openly for over an hour in what have become periodic discussions with football media. Similarly have the fortunes of his team improved, with recollections of a defeat to Bahrain and tie with Indonesia seeming rather distant after wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June secured the Socceroos’ spot in next year’s global tournament.

Those victories 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 unexpected brink of breaking into pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November friendlies against Venezuela, presently placed 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 respect.

While Popovic acknowledges that he started in the job assuming to only be able to rely on a core group of players, he now thinks the group he can trust has expanded. This isn’t just through the rise of young players such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as authentic international players. There are also the likes of Miloš Degenek’s comeback from the wilderness and Paul Izzo’s growth into a genuine Socceroos keeper with the potential to compete with Maty Ryan.

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

This unforeseen rise of talent, and the change in thinking it has sparked in Popovic, has paved the way for players on the fringes of the squad. Even those not yet considered amongst those group can keep faith that, in June next year, they could be on the roster. A player like Adrian Segečić might be about to be absent for a month of playing due to an ankle injury, but if he – or any other player – continues to deliver consistently, then the coach is emphasizing they’re every chance of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a cap or a stop on that – to announce in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more additions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to know that they have an possibility. Why can’t there be an additional player that joins in June?”

But this growth, in a way, brings us back to Popovic’s introductory address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to impress him, to do something remarkable and go beyond the predictions others have for them, he wants his team to have the same mindset.

“Saying I want to do something exceptional is just ‘we don’t want to have restrictions’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves into ‘let’s be participants at the World Cup, and let’s go home and congratulate ourselves for being there’.

“I emphasize it to the group: one day, Australia will go very far in the World Cup. And why not this group? Why do we have to wait two or three World Cups, when I’m watching and praising something remarkable from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”