Australia appoint former Crystal Palace defender as boss following shock World Cup qualifying results

The Socceroos lost to Bahrain and drew with Indonesia, failing to score in either match

(Getty Images)

Tony Popovic was named as the new coach of Australia on Monday, three days after the shock resignation of Graham Arnold in the wake of the team’s poor start to the third round of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

A member of Australia’s ‘golden generation’, the former centre half won 58 caps for his country during a playing career that included long stints in club football in England with Crystal Palace and Japan with Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

Since retirement, the 51-year-old has mainly coached in Australia with his crowning achievement being the Asian Champions League title he won with Western Sydney Wanderers in 2014, only the second year of the club’s existence.

“Coaching the Socceroos is probably a dream come true,” Popovic, who has signed a deal through the 2026 World Cup finals, told a news conference.

“I look forward to the challenge. I’m excited by it. The Socceroos are in a good position .... This campaign hasn’t started the best, but I know there’s enough time, enough games.”

Football Australia were keen to make a permanent appointment before the next World Cup qualifier against China on Oct. 10, a match the Socceroos must win to get their campaign for a sixth straight appearance at the World Cup finals back on track.

A rare home loss against Bahrain by a 1-0 scoreline plus a 0-0 draw with Indonesia in Jakarta prompted Arnold to stand down last Friday with Australia five points adrift of Group C leaders Japan in fifth place.

“The team maybe looked a little bit flat,” Popovic said. “I don’t think it’ll take too much to change the way we play ... we do it with the energy, we do it with the desire, and we do it with a speed and dynamic type of play that I think the players will enjoy.”

The top two in Group C will qualify automatically for the 2026 finals in North America with the third and fourth place finishers advancing to another round of preliminaries.

Popovic said his team would still be aiming to finish top of the group. “Australia needs to be qualifying for World Cups,” he said. “Two times in the last five, we qualified automatically ... it’s not easy. But should we not aim for first spot? No, we should always aim to be the best.”

The last two Australian coaches of the Socceroos, Ange Postecoglou and Arnold, have walked away from the job and Popovic accepted that the run to the round of 16 at the Qatar World Cup two years ago had raised expectations further.

Graham Arnold stepped down after the draw with Indonesia (Getty Images)

“What follows from that is we expect more in managing qualifiers,” he said. “That’s not a bad thing. Expect more from me.”

Popovic was in charge at Melbourne Victory until the end of the last A-League season, when he opted against renewing his contract and moved to Croatia with his family.

At Victory, Popovic developed a reputation for playing defensive football but he stood by his coaching record on Monday.

“I know what I stand for,” he said. “I know my values, what I can do with a group of players. I know I can improve every single player that I work with. That will continue, and I know we’ll play football that everyone will enjoy.”

Reuters