The current striker stocks for the Socceroos have come in for some criticism.
Mitchell Duke was only really selected in the first place due to a lack of competition, while Brandon Borrello has wild swings in goal-scoring form from season to season at club level and lacks consistency. This begs the question, who else might be able to step up and fill the role?
Beginning with an A-League star in the making, Patrick Wood looks certain to play for the Socceroos at some point. He was a prolific striker at NPL level and showed promise numerous times at Sydney FC, but was pushed out by marquee players which reduced his minutes.
He has the right instincts and finishing skills, but his main problem was mistiming his runs and getting offside. If he can fix that, he’ll be a real contender for the Socceroos.
After greatly impressing at youth level, Iredale was looking like he was set to get match time with the senior squad at Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga. But this was halted by a severe foot injury that left it looking like it had been “run over by a truck.”
After briefly coming back, he again fractured his toe in another bad tackle and lost more time. Then the pandemic hit which again impacted his progression.
But he’s now playing with the senior squad after a move to Wiesbaden in the second division. There he scored a goal, dribbling from halfway on a fast break and rounded the last defender and the keeper to slot the ball home with great composure. There’s nothing wrong with him now and this could be a breakout year for him.
An exciting player who can make something out of nothing, Alou Kuol was a constant threat and crowd favourite at Central Coast Mariners. It’s a surprise that he has yet to make the national squad, but he’s well deserving of consideration.
(Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)
After scoring eight goals in 15 matches with Reims 2 last season, Toure has since moved to second-division Paris FC in an attempt to get more first-team minutes. He has plenty of skill and is clearly a potential Socceroos striker candidate in the future.
The younger brother of Mohamed, Musa is said to be even better than his sibling. If that’s the case then he too should be in the mix in this list. A good season this year at Adelaide will help his prospects considerably. He turns 18 in November.
Another A-League player worth watching this season will be Noah Botic. Highly rated and likened to Mark Viduka, he has already played for the national team at youth level but is yet to join the senior squad. The potential is there, but like other young strikers in the A-League, he’ll need to have a good season to stand out and make his case.
As if Botic, Wood and Toure weren’t enough, Thomas Waddingham has entered the fray to become another potential candidate for a Socceroos call-up in the future. After a good run in the Australia Cup with four goals and sending Brisbane into the Final, he seems to be headed in the right direction. He models himself on Erling Haaland and overseas scouts are paying attention.
Perhaps, if not certainly, the least-known name on this list, Matteo Mazzone is another player who should be in contention for a Socceroos call-up. Described as technically gifted, he is now at Eintracht Frankfurt after a move from Wolfsburg but is yet to play at senior level.
He’s played for Italy at youth level, but he also qualifies for Australia through a parent. He could be the next Alessandro Circati or Cristian Volpato.
Cristian Volpato playing for AS Roma (Photo by Antonietta Baldassarre/Insidefoto/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Although he is currently not a striker, he scored four goals from 16 matches in the last World Cup qualifying campaign which is a pretty good effort for a pivot. With his vision and intelligence, I could see him adapting to the striker role, with a lower work rate to extend his career.
You couldn’t just throw him in there, he’d need to study the role first and be given specific coaching, but I could see it working. He’s just another option.
That’s nine players who could potentially be the Socceroos’ No.9. Then you have attacking midfielders and wingers like Nestory Irankunda, Riley McGree, Marlee Francois, Aydan Hammond, Garang Kuol, Alex Robertson, Volpato, Marco Tilio and Adrian Segecic, plus a few others.
A full squad could look something like this:
Waddingham
G. Kuol – Robertson – Volpato
Genreau – T. Francois
Bos – Rowles – Circati – Burgess
Gauci
*Note – Inverted wingers used here
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