Manchester United teen gets shock Socceroos call-up, months out from World Cup

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Tony Popovic has unveiled another squad full of surprises, handing teenage Manchester United prospect James Overy his first senior call-up for the Socceroos’ final matches of 2025.

There are 11 new faces in Popovic’s 25-man selection for the upcoming friendlies against Venezuela and Colombia - the penultimate window before he settles on his squad for next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Two of the inclusions have been named for the first time, with Overy by far the biggest shock.

The Perth-born defender was the youngest member of the Young Socceroos side that recently competed at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile. The team failed to get out of their group after winning one of three games.

Overy, who turns 18 over the weekend, joined the Manchester United academy last year and has impressed manager Ruben Amorim, who has extended him regular invitations to join the Premier League club’s first-team training sessions - although he is still yet to feature at senior level.

Another Young Socceroos star, Sydney FC’s Paul Okon-Engstler, has also been named in Popovic’s squad; he is one of five A-League players to have earned a call-up, along with veteran Craig Goodwin, Melbourne City’s Patrick Beach and Kai Trewin, and another Sky Blue recruit in Al Hassan Toure, the older brother of Mohamed who scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over the Newcastle Jets last weekend.

The other first-timer is 28-year-old striker Deni Juric, the younger brother of former Socceroos forward Tomi, who plays for Polish club Wisła Płock, while regular stars Jackson Irvine and Riley McGree have also been named as expected after recovering from injuries, and fringe defenders Callum Elder and Jack Iredale get another chance to impress in the absence of Jordan Bos, Alessandro Circati, Jacob Italiano and Harry Souttar.

Popovic was always going to shake things up for the November window due to a spate of injuries which have ruled out those first-choice players, but few anticipated that he would cast the net as widely as he has.

“It’s another opportunity to expand the depth and introduce players who have not yet been exposed to the Socceroos environment or senior international football,” Popovic said.

“We also welcome back some familiar faces, from Australia and abroad. I’ve had the chance to closely observe the opening rounds of the A-League season, and we believe this is the ideal time to integrate domestic players into the squad.

“We are delighted to be back in the United States to face strong South American opposition as we continue our preparations for the World Cup.”