BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Cristian Volpato was vaulted into Australia’s World Cup squad just days after confirming a switch of national eligibility from Italy, four years after declining an invitation to join the Socceroos ahead of the 2022 tournament.
Coach Tony Popovic included the 22-year-old Volpato in the 26-man squad announced Monday. Volpato and striker Tete Yengi were among 17 players selected in a World Cup squad for the first time.
Skipper Mat Ryan, with 104 international caps, and Mathew Leckie were picked for a fourth World Cup, equaling the Australian record held by Tim Cahill and Mark Milligan, and Popovic said the veteran pair “can lead the way and guide these young players.”
The Sydney-born Volpato played for Italy’s Under-21 team but was eligible to make the switch to Australia under FIFA rules because he never played a competitive game for the senior Italy team. Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup being co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
Volpato only joined the Socceroos camp in Los Angeles on the weekend, too late to participate in the 1-0 World Cup warmup loss to Mexico at Pasadena.
“He’s a very talented player. A young player — he’s doing well in Serie A,” Popovic told a news conference after the squad announcement. “Technically a very good player, great left foot, comfortable under pressure. I’m looking forward to working with him.”
Popovic said it would be easy to say Australia’s selection appeared to be one that looked toward the future but “I think we should keep the expectation high now.”
“What we have is a lot of young exuberance, a lot of exciting talent,” he said. “Will they be better in four and eight years? Without a doubt, but that’s not to say they’re not good enough now.
“I want them all to give me a (selection) headache every week, and I believe in these young boys.”
Australia will play another warmup game on Saturday against Switzerland at San Diego to finetune for Group D games against Turkey at Vancouver on June 13, the U.S. at Seattle six days later and Paraguay at Santa Clara on June 25.
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Australia squad:
Goalkeepers: Mat Ryan, Patrick Beach, Paul Izzo.
Defenders: Aziz Behich, Jordan Bos, Cameron Burgess, Alessandro Circati, Milos Degenek, Jason Geria, Lucas Herrington, Jacob Italiano, Harry Souttar, Kai Trewin.
Midfielders: Cameron Devlin, Jackson Irvine, Connor Metcalfe, Mathew Leckie, Paul Okon-Engstler, Aiden O’Neill.
Forwards: Ajdin Hrustic, Nestory Irankunda, Awer Mabil, Mohamed Toure, Nishan Velupillay, Cristian Volpato, Tete Yengi.
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup