Australia’s squad is ready to manage the excitement surrounding their upcoming World Cup clash against the United States, according to assistant coach Hayden Foxe. He emphasized that the players are mature and do not require staff intervention to limit their social media use.
The Socceroos will face the USA in Seattle on Friday, both teams buoyed by strong performances in their Group D openers, with Australia defeating Turkey and the US overcoming Paraguay.
Despite Australia’s recent success, some US analysts, including former defender Alexi Lalas, have dismissed them as a threat, labeling the team as merely “average team by any measure” in his pre-tournament assessment of the participating nations.
Foxe believes there is no need to shield the players from external commentary. He stated, “We can’t baby them. They’re their own selves, we want them to be their own selves,”
He added, “Social media’s out there, they’re aware of media and the comments and what’s being said. “But we’re concentrated on us. They’re old enough and mature enough to understand what gets said and what doesn’t get said.”
Australia, who has yet to progress past the round of 16 in World Cup history, enjoyed a significant victory against Turkey, clinching a 2-0 win thanks to impressive goals from Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe.
Irankunda noted that the team drew motivation from comments made by Turkey’s captain Hakan Calhanoglu, who suggested his squad was more talented than the Socceroos. “It did piss off a few boys, but at the end of the day, these guys can talk all the shit… we don’t really care,” he remarked.
Metcalfe expressed confidence in the team, stating that under coach Tony Popovic, Australia will enter the match against the US “full of energy, full of confidence”
However, Foxe cautioned his players against getting overly excited, recalling how enthusiasm surged after Saudi Arabia’s surprise defeat of eventual champions Argentina at Qatar 2022, only for them to subsequently exit the tournament early. “Fantastic win against Turkey. Memorable, great. Enjoy that moment,” he advised. “Now that’s gone. Now we move on to the US.”
