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The moment Tony Popovic eventually brought together his maiden Socceroos squad, the recently appointed coach presented a set of standards. Most were straightforward and concise – ideal given the upheaval following his abrupt appointment, after Graham Arnold’s exit, and with fewer than three weeks to get ready for vital 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic insisted that any player who aimed to pull on a Socceroos shirt would need to adopt an “elite” mindset to secure, or continue to earn that distinction. But there was an additional message. Less a demand and a call to greatness – and one that has been thrown clearer into focus with each step taken on the road towards the World Cup in North America.

“My hopes were to do something extraordinary, in my introductory talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That remains the same.”

A little more than a year on from that gathering in an Adelaide hotel, many of other things have changed, even if Popovic’s expectations are the same. The coach, for one, looks really comfortable as Socceroos manager. The 52-year-old’s standing for discipline differs greatly with the approachable and at times jovial figure holding court for over an hour in what have become periodic interviews with football media. So too have the results of his team progressed, with recollections of a loss to Bahrain and stalemate with Indonesia seeming rather far off after victories over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June booked 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 snapped away by the United States earlier this month. It’s momentum that has taken the Socceroos to the surprising brink of crashing pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November warm-up matches 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 final games of European qualifying – carry weight in this regard.

Although Popovic concedes that he arrived in the job expecting to only be able to count on a main squad of players, he now feels the pool he can rely on has swelled. This isn’t just 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 reappearance from the sidelines and Paul Izzo’s blossoming into a genuine Socceroos keeper with the ability to challenge 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 fully have much apart from this. Just make it work and make them better.’ Now, I think like there are 15, 20 players that have come into 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 unforeseen emergence of talent, and the change in thinking it has inspired in Popovic, has opened the door for players on the periphery of the squad. Even those not yet regarded amongst those ranks can keep faith that, in June next year, they could be on the flight. 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 – keeps to deliver steadily, then the coach is stating plainly they’re every chance of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a limit or a halt on that – to declare in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more new faces,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to feel that they have an opportunity. Why can’t there be another player that steps up in June?”

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

“Saying I want to do something unique 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 pat each other on the back 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 exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”