Martin Boyle has again been denied FIFA World Cup selection after being omitted from the Socceroos’ final 26-man squad. The 33-year-old winger was one of four players cut from the 30-man train-on squad, joining goalkeeper Joe Gauci, defender Kye Rowles and forward Brandon Borello in missing out.
Popovic’s Selection Philosophy
Socceroos coach Tony Popovic described Boyle as a victim of his willingness to “keep the door open” for players who had “nothing to do with” Australia’s qualification campaign. Uncapped attacking weapons Cristian Volpato and Tete Yengi were named in the squad, despite not being part of the match-day squad for Sunday’s 1-0 friendly loss to Mexico.
“I’m not going to go into how he took the news,” Popovic said of Boyle’s reaction. “That’s a private conversation that we had, but he knows he’s played an important role in getting here.”
Heartbreak for Veteran
Scotland-born Boyle, who missed the 2022 World Cup through injury, has scored 10 goals in 41 Socceroos appearances. He watched the entire Mexico match from the bench, perhaps an early sign of the disappointment to come. Popovic admitted such discussions are “never easy”, but stressed the need to consider a range of factors.
“We’ve given so many players an opportunity at different times ... Tete Yengi, Cristian Volpato coming in late, and a couple more in March (teenage defender Lucas Herrington and winger Awer Mabil). That’s four players that had nothing to do with our campaign and are now going to the World Cup,” Popovic said.
New Faces and Future Cycle
Volpato switched his international allegiance from Italy to Australia late last week, while Japan-based striker Yengi earns his first call-up. The squad also includes teenage defender Lucas Herrington and experienced winger Awer Mabil. Popovic described the group as having “a lot of young exuberance, a lot of exciting talent, which is I think the start of a new cycle.”
The Socceroos face Switzerland in San Diego on Sunday in their final warm-up before opening their World Cup group D campaign against Turkiye in Vancouver on June 14.
Full 26-Man Squad
- Goalkeepers: Patrick Beach, Paul Izzo, Mathew Ryan
- Defenders: Aziz Behich, Jordan Bos, Cameron Burgess, Alessandro Circati, Milos Degenek, Jason Geria, Lucas Herrington, Harry Souttar, Kai Trewin
- Midfielders: Cameron Devlin, Ajdin Hrustic, Jackson Irvine, Connor Metcalfe, Aiden O’Neill, Paul Okon-Engsstler
- Forwards: Nestory Irankunda, Jacob Italiano, Mathew Leckie, Awer Mabil, Mohamed Toure, Nishan Velupillay, Cristian Volpato, Tete Yengi
