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As soon as Tony Popovic finally gathered his first Socceroos squad, the new coach outlined a set of standards. Most were straightforward and concise – suitable given the turmoil around his unexpected arrival, following Graham Arnold’s departure, and with less than three weeks to get ready for crucial 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic asserted that any player who aspired to wear a Socceroos shirt would need to embrace an “premier” attitude to secure, or keep that distinction. But there was another point. Not so much an order and a call to greatness – and one that has been brought more distinctly into view with every step taken on the path towards the World Cup in North America.

“My expectations were to do something extraordinary, in my initial talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That stays constant.”

Approximately a year on from that gathering in an Adelaide hotel, a lot of other things have changed, even if Popovic’s goals stay the same. The coach, for one, looks really at home as Socceroos head. The 52-year-old’s reputation for austerity stands in stark contrast with the expansive and at times jovial figure speaking freely for over an hour in what have become semi-regular interviews with football media. So too have the fortunes of his team changed, with memories of a setback to Bahrain and draw with Indonesia feeling rather far off after wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June booked the Socceroos’ spot in next year’s global tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game winning streak 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 surprising brink of entering pot two in the World Cup draw. The performances of November friendlies against Venezuela, at the moment positioned 50th in the world, and 13th-ranked Colombia – as well as Ecuador’s games against Canada and New Zealand, and the final games of European qualifying – carry weight in this respect.

While Popovic acknowledges that he began in the job assuming to only be able to count on a key players of players, he now feels the pool he can call upon has swelled. This doesn't only come through the breakthrough of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as genuine international players. There are also the likes of Miloš Degenek’s comeback from the obscurity and Paul Izzo’s growth into a bona fide Socceroos keeper with the potential to compete with Maty Ryan.

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

This unforeseen emergence of talent, and the change in mindset it has brought about in Popovic, has created opportunities for players on the periphery of the squad. Even those not yet considered within those ranks can remain optimistic that, by June next year, they could be on the flight. 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 – keeps to deliver steadily, 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 declare in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more inclusions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to feel that they have an opportunity. Why can’t there be an additional player that steps up in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, leads back to Popovic’s initial talk as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to surprise him, to do something special and rise above the expectations others have for them, he wants his team to have the same attitude.

“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 contenders at the World Cup, and let’s go home and celebrate for being there’.

“I repeat 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 sitting back and praising something remarkable from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”