Lucas Herrington becomes youngest Socceroo to start a World Cup match

Herrington makes history, Barcelona watching

Lucas Herrington is the youngest Australian ever to start a World Cup match. The defender got the nod against Paraguay in the final Group D fixture, and Barcelona are already tracking him (1). Nestory Irankunda, Cristian Volpato, and Harry Souttar also featured in a young Socceroos lineup that Popovic trusted on the biggest stage.

Your team's World Cup so far

The Socceroos are in a strange spot. A heroic performance against Turkey gave fans real belief, then a 2–0 defeat to the United States brought everything back down. Assistant coach Mile Jedinak has urged the squad to focus only on what they can control. Supercomputer models suggest even a narrow loss to Paraguay should still be enough to squeeze through Group D.

Ryan benched, Beach starts

Maty Ryan publicly said he was disappointed after being dropped for Patrick Beach. Popovic called it a gut decision. The goalkeeper switch has been one of the biggest talking points of Australia's campaign.

Irvine backs FIFA's new red card rule

Jackson Irvine has come out in support of FIFA's controversial rule on covering mouths, the one that saw Paraguay's Miguel Almirón become the first player sent off under it. Irvine's voice carries weight in a squad that spans from Europe's top leagues to the third tier of Japan, where Jason Geria plays his club football.

Fan reactions

Socceroos supporters are already looking beyond the group stage, with a thread gaining traction about September friendlies against Brazil in Townsville and Brisbane. The mood is cautiously optimistic, fans know the Paraguay result matters less than the knockout round that should follow. See the discussion