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When Tony Popovic eventually brought together his first Socceroos squad, the new coach presented a range of expectations. The majority were clear and to the point – ideal in light of the upheaval following his sudden entry, following Graham Arnold’s departure, and with less than three weeks to prepare for vital 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic insisted that any player who hoped to represent in a Socceroos shirt would need to take on an “premier” mindset to deserve, or keep that privilege. But there was another point. More an inspiration and more an evocation – and one that has been thrown more distinctly into view with each step taken on the path towards the World Cup in North America.

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

A little more than a year on from that team talk in an Adelaide hotel, a lot of other things have evolved, even if Popovic’s ambitions remain the same. The coach, for one, looks really at home as Socceroos manager. The 52-year-old’s image for austerity differs greatly with the approachable and at times light-hearted figure engaging openly for over an hour in what have become periodic sit-downs with football media. So too have the fortunes of his team progressed, with thoughts of a loss to Bahrain and stalemate with Indonesia appearing fairly far off after successes over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June booked the Socceroos’ spot 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 unlikely edge of breaking into pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November exhibition games against Venezuela, at the moment placed 50th in the world, and 13th-ranked Colombia – as well as Ecuador’s games against Canada and New Zealand, and the remaining games of European qualifying – carry weight in this respect.

Even though Popovic admits that he arrived in the job assuming to only be able to rely on a core group of players, he now feels the group he can trust has expanded. 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 examples of Miloš Degenek’s return from the obscurity and Paul Izzo’s growth into a genuine Socceroos keeper with the ability to compete with Maty Ryan.

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

This unexpected appearance of talent, and the shift in thinking it has brought about in Popovic, has created opportunities for players on the periphery of the squad. Even those not yet viewed among those ranks can remain optimistic that, by June next year, they could be on the roster. 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 – persists to deliver regularly, then the coach is making clear they’re highly likely of being part of his plans.

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

But this broadening, in a way, brings us back to Popovic’s initial talk as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to surprise him, to do something outstanding and exceed the expectations others have for them, he wants his team to have the same attitude.

“Saying I want to do something exceptional is just ‘we don’t want to have limits’,” 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 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 observing and applauding something exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”