After a long qualifying campaign that went down to a penalty shootout, the Socceroos will be playing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
While the team may have qualified, few players stood out in a squad that stumbled in qualification.
Coach Graham Arnold has tried to give opportunities to younger players in recent years and the side will have a mix of youth and experience in Qatar.
Unlike previous World Cups, the Socceroos were able to name a 26-man squad for the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
Final 26-man Australia World Cup squad
Socceroos coach Graham Arnold confirmed his World Cup squad on Tuesday, November 8.
Arnold was permitted to name an official preliminary list of 35-55 players up until Friday, October 21 with FIFA confirming final squads needed to be submitted by no later than November 14.
The Socceroos won’t play again until the World Cup so squad selection came down to recent club form and performances during qualifying.
Teenage sensation Garang Kuol has made the cut with the young attacker set to join Newcastle United in January.
Some other notable names in the squad include former Premier League goalkeeper Maty Ryan, Sunderland defender Bailey Wright and Celtic midfielder Aaron Mooy.
Among the players missing, Mitch Langerak, Trent Sainsbury, Tom Rogic and Adam Taggart are the biggest surprises.
Here’s Australia’s confirmed World Cup squad:
| Position | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Maty Ryan | FC Copenhagen (DEN) | 30 | 75 |
| Goalkeeper | Andrew Redmayne | Sydney FC (AUS) | 33 | 3 |
| Goalkeeper | Danny Vukovic | Central Coast Mariners (AUS) | 37 | 4 |
| Defender | Milos Degenek | Columbus Crew (USA) | 28 | 38 |
| Defender | Aziz Behich | Dundee United (SCO) | 31 | 53 |
| Defender | Joel King | OB (DAN) | 21 | 3 |
| Defender | Nathaniel Atkinson | Hearts (SCO) | 23 | 5 |
| Defender | Fran Karacic | Brescia (ITA) | 26 | 10 |
| Defender | Harry Souttar | Stoke City (ENG) | 23 | 10 |
| Defender | Kye Rowles | Hearts (SCO) | 24 | 3 |
| Defender | Bailey Wright | Sunderland (ENG) | 30 | 27 |
| Defender | Thomas Deng | Albirex Niigata (JAP) | 25 | 2 |
| Midfielder | Aaron Mooy | Celtic (SCO) | 32 | 53 |
| Midfielder | Jackson Irvine | St Pauli (GER) | 29 | 49 |
| Midfielder | Ajdin Hrustic | Hellas Verona (ITA) | 26 | 20 |
| Midfielder | Keanu Baccus | St Mirren (SCO | 29 | 53 |
| Midfielder | Cameron Devlin | Hearts (SCO) | 24 | 1 |
| Midfielder | Riley McGree | Middlesbrough (ENG) | 23 | 10 |
| Forward | Awer Mabil | Cadiz (SPA) | 27 | 29 |
| Forward | Mathew Leckie | Melbourne City (AUS) | 31 | 72 |
| Forward | Martin Boyle | Hibernian (SCO) | 29 | 19 |
| Forward | Jamie Maclaren | Melbourne City (AUS) | 29 | 26 |
| Forward | Jason Cummings | Central Coast Mariners (AUS) | 27 | 1 |
| Forward | Mitchell Duke | Fagiano Okayama (JAP) | 31 | 20 |
| Forward | Garang Kuol | Central Coast Mariners (AUS) | 18 | 1 |
| Forward | Craig Goodwin | Adelaide United (AUS) | 30 | 10 |
Socceroos projected starting lineup at World Cup 2022
Just like the squad, Australia’s starting side for the 2022 World Cup is still very much a calculated guess at this stage.
In the Socceroos’ two playoff matches, they deployed a 4-1-4-1 formation but prior to that were using a 4-3-3 variation with two of their midfielders sitting deeper.
For the World Cup, Arnold may opt for a more defensive formation with group games against France, Denmark and Tunisia set to test their backline.
Possible Socceroos starting side (4-3-3): Ryan – Behich, Souttar, Wright, Atkinson – Mooy, Irvine, Hrustic – Boyle, Cummings, Mabil.
