Nineteen of the Isuzu UTE A-League’s rising stars have been selected in the 23-player Subway Young Socceroos squad set to play four 2025 AFC Under-20 Asian Cup qualifiers in late September.
Australia U20 head coach Trevor Morgan’s squad will convene in Abha, Saudi Arabia for the qualifiers; drawn in Group D in the 10-group, 45-nation preliminary stage of qualification for the 2025 U20 Asian Cup, the Young Socceroos are set to play Afghanistan, Macau Palestine and Saudi Arabia at Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium from September 23-29.
The 23-player squad, which features four players from clubs outside the Isuzu UTE A-League, is headlined by Central Coast Mariners rising star Miguel Di Pizio, Brisbane Roar goal machine Thomas Waddingham and highly-rated Adelaide United duo Luka Jovanovic and Jonny Yull.
The 19 Isuzu UTE A-League squad members selected in the Young Socceroos come from 10 clubs:
- Adelaide United: Jonny Yull, Luka Jovanovic, Panagiotis Kikianis, Fabian Talladira
- Brisbane Roar: Thomas Waddingham
- Central Coast Mariners: Miguel Di Pizio
- Macarthur FC: Frans Deli, Oliver Randazzo, Alexander Robinson
- Melbourne City: Zane Schreiber, Arion Sulemani
- Melbourne Victory: Daniel Graskoski, Joshua Inserra, Kyle Razmovski
- Perth Glory: Zach Lisolajski
- Sydney FC: Tiago Quintal
- Western Sydney Wanderers: Alexander Badolato, Jesse Cameron
- Western United: Jake Najdovski
CITY TRANSFER TARGETS: Two more signings the aim as title hopefuls explain transfer approach
DODD RETURNS! Adelaide United club legend returns to Reds as assistant coach: ‘A fantastic fit’
Morgan said the squad is prepared for a tough September window as four U20 Asian Cup qualifiers take place in Saudi Arabia.
“Our planning over the last 12-18 months has been about progressively building depth, experience and belief while refining our style of play ahead of these Qualifiers and ultimately ensuring we’re at the U20 Asian Cup in 2025,” Morgan said.
“The staff see real talent in these players with many progressing into A-League Men squads across the country. It’s an exciting group who thoroughly deserve to be in this position.
“The boys have had some fantastic results against difficult opposition recently and we’ve shown what we’re capable of when we play our football – it’s important we now execute that in a tournament-style setting with plenty at stake.
“We know the conditions and the opposition will be tough, especially with so much to play for and securing a result in this type of situation will not only galvanise us as a group but illustrate the mentality we’ve built throughout this cycle.”
Young Socceroos 23-player squad
Match Details
Afghanistan v Subway Young Socceroos
Monday, 23 September 2024
Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium, Abha
Kick-off: 4.00pm local / 11.00pm AEST
Subway Young Socceroos v Macau
Wednesday, 25 September 2024 Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium, Abha
Kick-off: 4.00pm local / 11.00pm AEST
Palestine v Subway Young Socceroos
Friday, 27 September 2024
Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium, Abha
Kick-off: 4.00pm local / 11.00pm AEST
Subway Young Socceroos v Saudi Arabia
Sunday, 29 September 2024
Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium, Abha
Kick-off: 8.00pm local / 3.00am AEST (Monday, 30 September)
