SYDNEY, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Football Australia (FA) on Friday announced that new head coach Tony Popovic has named a 26-player extended squad for the third round of the 2026 World Cup Asian qualifiers this month.
Popovic, who was named Socceroos head coach in September following the resignation of Graham Arnold, will face China in his first game in charge of the Australia's national team in South Australia on October 10 and Japan in Saitama on October 15.
The extended squad for the fixtures includes the return of English Premier League midfielder Massimo Luongo from international retirement.
Luongo, the player of the tournament at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, retired from international football late in 2023 to focus on his club football with Ipswich Town but has made himself available for the remainder of the qualification cycle.
He is among nine players in Popovic's first squad who were not called up by Arnold for September's qualifiers.
Arnold, the longest-serving coach in Socceroos history, resigned after Australia were beaten by Bahrain and drew with Indonesia in the opening third round games in the Asian qualifiers.
A former Socceroo, Popovic on Friday named three players who he coached in the most recent A-League season at Melbourne Victory - forwards Daniel Arzani and Nishan Velupillay and defender Jason Geria - in his first national team squad.
European-based Ajdin Hrustic, Jordy Bos, Gianni Stensness, Apostolos Stamatelopoulos and Riley McGree have also been recalled.
"This October window offers a great opportunity to showcase a vast improvement, both in our desire and in the quality of our play," Popovic said in a statement.
"This time in camp will be crucial as we lay the foundations that will not only help us succeed in this window but set the tone for our future ambitions."
The Socceroos are currently fifth in Group C in the third round of qualifying as they aim to qualify for a sixth consecutive FIFA World Cup. The top two teams in the group will automatically qualify for the tournament and the next two will progress to a fourth round of qualifying. ■
