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The Roar

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The A-Leaguers Postecoglou might be eying for Ecuador

New Zealand's Chris Wood, center left, competes for the ball with Australia's Matthew Spiranovic during their international friendly soccer match in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, June 5, 2011. (AP Photo/James Elsby)
Expert
25th February, 2014
17

Last week I looked at the twelve European-based players, I believe could be in the mix when Ange Postecoglou this morning names his squad for next week’s Ecuador friendly in London.

Here I look at the potential A-League represent.

Eugene Galekovic: the big thing in his favour is his consistency at A-League and Asian Champions League level over the past six or seven seasons. Should be in the final three with Mat Ryan and Mitch Langerak, and I have him vying for the number one spot with Ryan, ahead of Langerak. Has proved this season how adaptable he is and that he can adjust to playing in a proactive system where distribution is key.

Michael Zullo: left back remains problematic with no-one really banging Postecoglou’s door down. Zullo is at least playing in a system similar to what we can expect under the new manager, is playing well, and is adaptable enough to play higher up on the left hand side. Defensive game is improving.

Matt Spiranovic: if Ange is looking for a defender comfortable on the ball, than Spiranovic has shown this season that he is maturing into a more consistent footballer. While he can still be a little passive at times with his defending, having Ante Milicic on the Socceroos coaching panel should only aid his chances.

Jade North: an experienced central defender who has rarely let Australia down in the past, is playing in an open, proactive system at club level, and is composed on the ball.

Ivan Franjic: while he continues to be an adaptable option for Mike Mulvey, used in central midfield or even higher, in the top three, he hinted against Costa Rica that he could be the long term successor to Luke Wilkshire at right back. Now he just has to produce that sort of form consistently at international level, as he has done in the A-League.

Matt McKay: while used ostensibly out of position at left by Holger Osieck, the good news for McKay is that Postecoglou appears more likely to use him in his nominal role, in central midfield. The bad news is he has more competition there, but his adaptability and leadership means he has every chance of being in the mix here and for Brazil.

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Mark Milligan: now that he’s sorted out his knee injury, should be one of the first players picked, and for me, is the Socceroos skipper in waiting. Adaptable enough to play in central defence, it appears more likely he’ll be used as a twin pivot with Mile Jedinak, charged with the responsibility of containing the likes of Chile, Spain and Holland, and triggering our attacks.

Aaron Mooy: whether he has done quite enough in the eyes of the national team boss remains to be seen, but after appearing a little unsettled a month or two ago at Western Sydney Wanderers, he appears to be developing the consistency required in both his defensive and attacking game. The fact Tony Popovic was able to leave Mateo Poljak out of the Asian Champions League squad tells you his faith in Mooy is growing.

Tom Rogic: has come back into the A-League and immediately looked comfortable and influential, giving defensive midfielders constant headaches with his ability to find space, turn and play forward. Getting games has been his biggest issue and now that he has both the A-League and ACL, Rogic should be in decent condition for the World Cup.

James Troisi: there haven’t been too many Australian attackers shining in the A-League this season, but Troisi is certainly one, seamlessly stepping into one of the twin number 10 roles at the Melbourne Victory. Been impressed by how sharp he’s looked with and without the ball.

Five others making an impression, perhaps not quite ready:  
Adam Taggart, Dimi Petratos, Luke Brattan, Osama Malik, Tomi Juric

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