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As soon as Tony Popovic eventually assembled his first Socceroos squad, the fresh coach presented a set of requirements. The majority were clear and to the point – suitable given the disruption following his sudden arrival, following Graham Arnold’s resignation, and with less than three weeks to get ready for critical 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic maintained that any player who hoped to pull on a Socceroos shirt would need to take on an “elite” mindset to earn, or keep that honour. But there was another point. Not so much an order and more an evocation – and one that has been brought more distinctly into focus with each step taken on the road towards the World Cup in North America.

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

A little more than a year on from that meeting in an Adelaide hotel, plenty of other things have shifted, even if Popovic’s ambitions stay the same. The coach, for one, appears really comfortable as Socceroos boss. The 52-year-old’s image for discipline stands in stark contrast with the open and at times light-hearted figure holding court for over an hour in what have become frequent discussions with football media. Similarly have the results of his team changed, with memories of a loss to Bahrain and tie with Indonesia appearing rather far off after successes over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June guaranteed the Socceroos’ place in next year’s international tournament.

Those victories 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 edge of breaking into pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November friendlies 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 – carry weight in this regard.

Although Popovic admits that he arrived in the job expecting to only be able to depend on a main squad of players, he now believes the selection he can call upon has expanded. This isn’t just through the rise of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as real international players. There are also the cases of Miloš Degenek’s reappearance from the obscurity and Paul Izzo’s blossoming into a true Socceroos keeper with the potential to challenge Maty Ryan.

“The squad has totally changed in my mind – of what’s possible with players that have joined,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t really have much apart from this. Just get by and make them better.’ Now, I think like there are 15, 20 players that have come into that, and I’m convinced 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 shift in thinking it has sparked in Popovic, has opened the door for players on the periphery of the squad. Even those not yet regarded among those group can remain optimistic that, in 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 – persists to play 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 believe that they have an possibility. Why can’t there be one more player that comes in in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, brings us back to Popovic’s introductory address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to impress him, to do something remarkable and exceed the hopes others have for them, he wants his team to have the same philosophy.

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

“I emphasize 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 observing and praising something special from the Socceroos? Why should we have limits? Why not do it now?”