Socceroos manager Tony Popovic might have shocked fans and experts when he left goalkeeping captain Mat Ryan and deputy Jackson Irvine out of Australia’s World Cup victory with Turkey, but he says it came as no surprise within the Aussie camp.
It comes as he also declared he couldn’t care less if the upset 2-0 win in Vancouver changed the hearts and minds of rival nations after being labelled Group D’s easybeats ahead of the tournament.
Ryan has made 104 appearances for the Socceroos, including at four World Cups, and has been captain for more than 40 of them, but was left out for third-gamer and new World Cup hero Patrick Beach, who made a series of heroic saves to keep a clean-sheet.
Youngster Paul Okon-Engstler was also preferred in midfield to Irvine.
And while the moves would have copped flak had Australia lost, Popovic said they were the right selection moves regardless of the result.
“They may have been shocks for a lot of people, but they weren’t shocks for within our playing group and staff because, you know, we’re all working together every day and see the quality of these young boys,” he said.
“It’s a team selected to perform well. You never know with the result, of course. For me, it’s the performance.
“The result is the satisfaction and the outcome. Regardless of the result, it was the right decision.”
Beach was one of the stars of Australia’s historic win, producing an outstanding performance to hand Australia a well-earned clean sheet as the Turkish took 30 shots at goal.
The 22-year-old, who plays for Melbourne City, never looked panicked, stopping two well-struck free kicks, and his composure drew praise from Popovic.
“(I liked) his composure. He looked very at ease on the big stage,” he said.
“He made some good decisions in the first half. Playing out, he didn’t panic and just kick the ball long. He changed sides and the point of attack.
“He looked composed, and then he made the saves that he had to make. It was some wonderful free kicks that they took, and he was up to the task.
“I’m sure he won’t sleep much tonight, and he’ll remember this day for a very long time.”
The victory on Saturday night in Canada is the Socceroos’ first win in a World Cup opener since they defeated Japan in 2006.
The win also came against Australia, massive underdogs, with many claiming Turkiye would dominate, while the side’s next opponent, co-hosts USA, have labelled the side “average”.
When asked if he thought the win would change that perception, Popovic made it clear he did not care.
“I don’t know. Nor am I concerned by that,” he said.
“The nations we’re playing in this World Cup and the group stages are fantastic teams. Maybe the perception changes slightly because we’ve beaten Turkiye, a big nation.
“So, maybe that changes slightly, but we still feel that we’ve got a lot of work to do. We’ve got to move on to the US game, of course.
“Tonight’s a special night for all Socceroo fans here, and I’m sure back home watching. I’m glad we’ve made them very happy.
“They saw a team fighting throughout the whole game. A young team, lacking experience but (having) a lot of quality. We matched it with a very good side, so we’re happy.”
Goalscorer Nestory Irankunda was more pointed with his post-game comments on the disrespect, saying their message to the rest of the world was clear to see on the pitch.
“Obviously, we don’t like to hear people talk badly about us because we’re a great team,” Irankunda told SBS.
“People underestimate us a lot, and we showed them today that we can play. They kept the ball a lot more, but who scored the goals?
“We scored the goals, and we showed them that we can play football.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got to let these people talk. They can talk all they want, but at the end of the day, we’re going to put the performance on the field, and we did that today.
“So, we’ve got to focus on the next game, but we celebrate for now and regroup.”