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The moment Tony Popovic finally assembled his first Socceroos squad, the new coach detailed a set of expectations. Most were straightforward and to the point – perfect in light of the turmoil surrounding his unexpected arrival, after Graham Arnold’s departure, and with less than three weeks to get ready for critical 2026 World Cup qualifying matches against China and Japan.

Popovic maintained that any player who aimed to wear a Socceroos shirt would need to take on an “top-tier” attitude to secure, or keep that honour. But there was a further theme. Not so much an order and an invitation to excel – and one that has been thrown more distinctly into view with each step taken on the journey towards the World Cup in North America.

“My hopes were to do something special, in my initial 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 shifted, even if Popovic’s expectations are the same. The coach, for one, looks really settled as Socceroos head. The 52-year-old’s image for austerity differs greatly with the open and at times light-hearted figure speaking freely for over an hour in what have become periodic interviews with football media. Similarly have the fortunes of his team progressed, with memories of a defeat to Bahrain and tie with Indonesia seeming quite far off after wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June guaranteed the Socceroos’ spot in next year’s international tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game winning streak 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 crashing pot two in the World Cup draw. The results of November exhibition games 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 last games of European qualifying – loom large in this regard.

Even though Popovic acknowledges that he arrived in the job thinking to only be able to count on a core group of players, he now believes the pool he can rely on has grown. This is not only through the rise of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as real international players. There are also the likes of Miloš Degenek’s reappearance from the wilderness and Paul Izzo’s growth into a bona fide Socceroos keeper with the ability to challenge Maty Ryan.

“The squad has totally changed in my mind – of what’s achievable with players that have joined,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t really have much outside of this. Just make it work and make them better.’ Now, I believe like there are 15, 20 players that have come into that, and I’m certain there are more to come that I trust can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This unexpected emergence of talent, and the change in thinking it has inspired in Popovic, has created opportunities for players on the edges of the squad. Even those not yet regarded amongst those ranks can keep faith that, by June next year, they could be on the roster. 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 deliver consistently, then the coach is stating plainly they’re highly likely 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 additions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to feel that they have an chance. Why can’t there be an additional player that comes in in June?”

But this growth, in a way, returns us to Popovic’s first address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to impress him, to do something remarkable and go beyond the hopes others have for them, he wants his team to have the same philosophy.

“Saying I want to do something special is just ‘we don’t want to have boundaries’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves into ‘let’s be contenders at the World Cup, and let’s go home and congratulate ourselves for being there’.

“I repeat 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 sitting back and applauding something exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have restrictions? Why not do it now?”