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Ange Postecoglou insists he has an open mind to the final make-up of his Asian Cup squad after naming a 46-strong preliminary group.
From 17-year-old Daniel de Silva to 35-year-old veteran Tim Cahill, Postecoglou has given a nod to the future as well as including each of the 23 Socceroos from the World Cup squad.
But there’s no room for veterans Luke Wilkshire and Lucas Neill, ending their Socceroos careers.
Neill – named as tournament ambassador by FFA chairman Frank Lowy – was never a realistic prospect, while he remains without a club.
But Wilkshire travelled to Brazil with the Socceroos in June before being cut at the last minute, and had been playing regularly in the Dutch top flight competition.
Postecoglou said he had “no idea” where Neill was but a recent hamstring injury didn’t help Wilkshire.
“Everyone’s considered, there isn’t a footballer that I wouldn’t consider,” he said.
The Socceroos coach said there was no perfect science behind the number of players, which will be cut to a training squad of around 26 before a final group of 23 comes into camp on December 27.
The large group ensures there is cover in all areas and gives “a little bit of encouragement” to players on the radar.
“I can’t afford to think about 23 players right now, that’s why we’ve cast the net far and wide,” he said.
“I feel a lot more comfortable a month out from our first game than I did prior to the World Cup in terms of the options and the depth that we have.”
There are 16 A-League players in the squad and four without Socceroos experience; De Silva, Luke Brattan, Josh Risdon and Mustafa Amini.
De Silva’s selection is a bolt from the blue but Postecoglou said the Perth Glory starlet wasn’t making up the numbers.
“If his form warrants it, he’ll get selected,” he said.
Injuries could yet wreck the chances of several players.
Rhys Williams hasn’t played since January and is unlikely to resume national duty despite being almost back to full training.
World Cup regular Adam Taggart has yet to play for Fulham after off-season surgery, while Josh Kennedy (back) and Bailey Wright (are under injury clouds.
But Robbie Kruse is a lock for the tournament after missing Brazil through a knee injury.
Postecoglou said the final make-up would be a strong contender for the January tournament.
“Everything we’ve done post-World Cup is to make sure we’ll be ready for January 9, and we will be,” he said.
AAP bmc
ANGE’S 46-MAN ASIAN CUP EXTENDED SQUAD
Mustafa Amini (Borussia Dortmund, Germany), Terry Antonis (Sydney FC), Aziz Behich (Bursaspor, Turkey), Oliver Bozanic (Luzern, Switzerland), Luke Brattan (Brisbane Roar), Mark Bresciano (Al Gharafa, Qatar), Joshua Brillante (Fiorentina, Italy), Nathan Burns (Wellington Phoenix), Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls, USA), Jason Davidson (West Brom, England), Daniel De Silva (Perth Glory), Adam Federici (Reading, England), Ivan Franjic (Torpedo Moscow, Russia), Eugene Galekovic (Adelaide United), Ben Halloran (Fortuna Dusseldorf, Germany), Chris Herd (Aston Villa, England), James Holland (Austria Vienna, Austria), Bernie Ibini-Isei (Sydney FC), Mile Jedinak (Crystal Palace, England), Brad Jones (Liverpool, England), Tomi Juric (Western Sydney), Josh Kennedy (Nagoya Grampus, Japan), Robbie Kruse (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany), Mitchell Langerak (Borussia Dortmund, Germany), Mathew Leckie (Ingolstadt, Germany), Massimo Luongo (Swindon Town, England), Ryan McGowan (Shandong Luneng Taishan, China), Matt McKay (Brisbane Roar), Mark Milligan (Melbourne Victory), Aaron Mooy (Melbourne City), Mitch Nichols (Perth Glory), Tommy Oar (Utrecht, Netherlands), Josh Risdon (Perth Glory), Nikita Rukavytsya (Western Sydney), Mat Ryan (Club Brugge, Belgium), Trent Sainsbury (PEC Zwolle, Netherlands), Brad Smith (Liverpool, England), Matthew Spiranovic (Western Sydney), Adam Taggart (Fulham, England), Nikolai Topor-Stanley (Western Sydney), James Troisi (Zulte Waregem, Belgium), Carl Valeri (Melbourne Victory), Dario Vidosic (Sion, Switzerland), Alex Wilkinson (Jeonbuk Hyundai, Korea), Rhys Williams (Middlesbrough, England), Bailey Wright (Preston, England).
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