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As soon as Tony Popovic at last gathered his first Socceroos squad, the recently appointed coach detailed a range of standards. A lot were unambiguous and concise – perfect given the upheaval following his sudden arrival, following Graham Arnold’s exit, and with fewer than three weeks to get ready for critical 2026 World Cup qualifying matches against China and Japan.

Popovic insisted that any player who aimed to wear a Socceroos shirt would need to adopt an “top-tier” attitude to deserve, or continue to earn that privilege. But there was a further point. More an inspiration and more an evocation – and one that has been brought clearer into perspective with every step taken on the journey towards the World Cup in North America.

“My visions were to do something special, in my first 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 shifted, even if Popovic’s expectations are the same. The coach, for one, seems genuinely settled as Socceroos head. The 52-year-old’s standing for discipline sharply contrasts with the open and at times cheerful figure speaking freely for over an hour in what have become frequent sit-downs with football media. So too have the performances of his team changed, with thoughts of a setback to Bahrain and tie with Indonesia feeling fairly distant after successes over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June secured the Socceroos’ spot in next year’s international tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game unbeaten run under Popovic, one that was only broken away by the United States earlier this month. It’s form that has taken the Socceroos to the unlikely brink of entering pot two in the World Cup draw. The results of November warm-up matches 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 remaining games of European qualifying – are significant in this context.

While Popovic concedes that he began in the job thinking to only be able to rely on a key players of players, he now thinks the group he can call upon has swelled. This is not only through the emergence of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as authentic international players. There are also the cases of Miloš Degenek’s comeback from the obscurity and Paul Izzo’s growth into a true Socceroos keeper with the potential to push Maty Ryan.

“The squad has completely changed in my mind – of what’s attainable with players that have entered,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t really have much apart from this. Just manage and make them better.’ Now, I feel like there are 15, 20 players that have entered that, and I’m certain there are more to come that I feel can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This surprising rise of talent, and the shift in thinking it has brought about in Popovic, has opened the door for players on the fringes of the squad. Even those not yet viewed among those group can hold out hope that, in June next year, they could be on the plane. 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 – persists to play consistently, then the coach is stating plainly they’re highly likely of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a restriction or a stop on that – to reveal in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more inclusions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to believe that they have an opportunity. Why can’t there be an additional player that steps up in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, returns us to Popovic’s initial address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to exceed expectations him, to do something outstanding and go beyond the hopes others have for them, he wants his team to have the same mindset.

“Saying I want to do something special 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 emphasize 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 applauding something exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have limits? Why not do it now?”