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As soon as Tony Popovic eventually assembled his initial Socceroos squad, the recently appointed coach detailed a range of requirements. Most were straightforward and concise – ideal in light of the upheaval around his unexpected appointment, in the wake of Graham Arnold’s resignation, and with less than three weeks to make arrangements for crucial 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic insisted that any player who aspired to pull on a Socceroos shirt would need to adopt an “premier” attitude to deserve, or keep that distinction. But there was a further message. More an inspiration and an invitation to excel – and one that has been thrown more distinctly into focus with every step taken on the road towards the World Cup in North America.

“My expectations were to do something extraordinary, in my initial talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That hasn’t changed.”

Approximately a year on from that team talk in an Adelaide hotel, plenty of other things have changed, even if Popovic’s goals remain the same. The coach, for one, appears genuinely settled as Socceroos manager. The 52-year-old’s standing for austerity differs greatly with the expansive and at times cheerful figure engaging openly for over an hour in what have become frequent discussions with football media. Similarly have the fortunes of his team improved, with thoughts of a setback to Bahrain and stalemate with Indonesia seeming fairly remote after wins over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June booked the Socceroos’ spot in next year’s worldwide tournament.

Those wins came as part of an 11-game winning streak under Popovic, one that was only snapped away by the United States earlier this month. It’s form that has taken the Socceroos to the unlikely precipice of breaking into pot two in the World Cup draw. The outcomes of November exhibition games against Venezuela, presently positioned 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 respect.

While Popovic acknowledges that he began in the job thinking to only be able to depend on a core group of players, he now believes the selection he can rely on has swelled. This is not only through the rise of youngsters such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as authentic international players. There are also the examples of Miloš Degenek’s reappearance from the wilderness and Paul Izzo’s blossoming into a genuine Socceroos keeper with the ability to push 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 beyond this. Just get by and make them better.’ Now, I think like there are 15, 20 players that have entered that, and I’m sure there are additional ones to come that I feel can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This unexpected rise of talent, and the shift in outlook it has inspired in Popovic, has opened the door for players on the edges of the squad. Even those not yet considered among those ranks can hold out hope that, by June next year, they could be on the flight. A player like Adrian Segečić might be about to sit out a month of playing due to an ankle injury, but if he – or any other player – continues to perform regularly, then the coach is stating plainly they’re every chance of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a restriction or a stop 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 possibility. Why can’t there be another player that joins in June?”

But this expansion, in a way, returns us to Popovic’s initial address as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to surprise him, to do something remarkable and exceed the expectations others have for them, he wants his team to have the same mindset.

“Saying I want to do something special is just ‘we don’t want to have boundaries’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to box 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 repeat it to the group: one day, Australia will go a long way 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 restrictions? Why not do it now?”