Seattle: Maty Ryan admits he is still hurting after being dropped for the Socceroos’ first two World Cup matches – but both he and Jackson Irvine have dutifully accepted coach Tony Popovic’s decision, insisting personal disappointment should never come before the greater good of the team.
Widely viewed as first XI locks ahead of the tournament, Ryan and Irvine have taken their demotions to the bench as well as Popovic could have hoped, pushing their own feelings aside to help usher their younger teammates through their first World Cup experience.
Ryan was on track to overtake Mark Schwarzer as the Socceroos all-time appearances leader in the event of a deep World Cup knockout run – but the emergence of 22-year-old Patrick Beach as a bona fide international-level goalkeeper is a signal that the days of him being an automatic starter, despite being captain, are over.
Ryan revealed that Popovic pulled him aside before the Turkey game to explain that he would not be playing, just as the coach did when he handed Joe Gauci a shock start in his first World Cup qualifier after taking over.
Very rarely does Popovic explain his decision-making to overlooked players, but in the case of the 34-year-old, he has made an exception out of respect for his status as skipper.
“He just told me that I haven’t done anything wrong or anything, but he just has a gut feeling that he wants to play Beachy,” Ryan said.
“It was the same when he said he wanted to play Joey, and that’s that. Out of respect, he just told me about it, and that was his thing. That’s the way it goes. Unfortunately for me personally, he’s gone with him in the first two games. But that’s the way it goes.
“I’m just staying focused on what I can control. I’m ready if called upon.”
Ryan’s comments dispel a wild theory that Popovic had made the decision, at least in part, because of comments he had made on a podcast with former NRL player Josh Mansour.
“Everyone wants to play. I think if anyone’s not hurting, that’s not playing in the squad, then they shouldn’t be here. I’m no different,” Ryan said.
“It’s important that everyone is in it collectively. We put the team first and it’s good to be disappointed, but it’s about how you go about channelling that disappointment and not detrimenting the team, of course. That is another key component. We’ve always been pretty good within the Socceroos squad and set-up. Any personalities that don’t match with that, they’re not in here.”
Ryan, who came into the World Cup on the back of a strong season in La Liga with Spanish club Levante, said he was impressed by what he’d seen from Beach, who plays in the A-League for Melbourne City.
“He’s done a great job the other night against Turkey and again [against the United States]. What he could do, he did. Difficult scenarios, the goals that he conceded,” he said.
“He’s very composed, he’s very calm. He looks very assured of himself and he has that confidence there. He’s had a really good start to his professional career. You see that he’s got that strong mentality and the willingness to want to learn and grow. He’s handling himself really well under the circumstances.”
Irvine, meanwhile, has had to be content with a role off the bench in Australia’s first two games, with Paul Okon jnr chosen ahead of him as Aiden O’Neill’s midfield partner.
“That’s the reality of football,” he said.
“We’re here as a squad. All you ever want to be a part of as a player is a part of a group that’s successful. To do that, you have to be a united group. Decisions are made. Then what do you have to do? You have to react.
“There’s a lot of football left to be played. Every single player is chomping to get on that pitch. For myself personally, it’s just about staying ready, doing all the right things and above all else, contributing to the group, which is the most important thing.”
After Paraguay’s 1-0 win over Turkey, the path forward for the Socceroos is simple: they must secure at least a point on Friday (2pm AEST) to lock up second spot in Group D and guarantee progression to the round of 32.
In that scenario, Australia would face the second-placed team in Group G – likely Iran or Egypt – in Dallas on July 3.
But since the Socceroos cannot finish lower than third, and eight of the best third-placed finishers from the 12 groups will still make it through to the knockout phase, a defeat may not necessarily end their World Cup campaign, and they could end up in New York, Boston or even Kansas City instead.
Irvine expected players would be able to move on from their defeat to the USA with no issues.
“They’re a really level-headed group. Although the high was obviously an extreme high last week, it didn’t ever feel like it got away from us, riding that high,” he said.
“The staff are great with that as well, keeping the boys calm … you have to enjoy the emotions of it and you have to suffer the emotions of it as well, but it’s about keeping it level and balanced, not letting either one of those overtake and become something too much. They won’t need much help in that department.”
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