Updated ,first published
Tony Popovic says he is open to all possibilities – including signing a long-term contract extension with the Socceroos – amid speculation he could be approached to join his old club, Crystal Palace, in the Premier League.
Popovic’s media call on Monday afternoon was keenly anticipated not only because of the sudden intrigue surrounding his future, but because it remains unclear if Australia’s two friendlies in the Middle East this month will unfold as scheduled, with players reluctant to travel to Jordan for security reasons.
He said he expects both Saturday’s (1.45am AEDT) clash with Qatar and next week’s match against Jordan in Amman to proceed, that no players had expressed to him an unwillingness to travel, and that no others declined selection for such reasons – despite Professional Footballers Australia declaring last week that players were “overwhelmingly” against going to Jordan and wanted the match moved or rescheduled.
“The plan is to play the games unless something else changes, some decisions are made … the wellbeing of the players and staff is of paramount importance, so that’s the number one topic here,” he said.
But in classic Popovic style, he gave little away when it came to his own situation.
While he confirmed he was in talks with Football Australia over a new deal and acknowledged the “urgency” necessitated by the AFC Asian Cup’s 12-month postponement, Popovic gave no hints as to his next move, saying he was purely focused on the future of the team.
“We’ll see how that goes, but what’s clear is I love the job,” he said.
“Nothing’s changed in that aspect, nothing’s changed in the way I work. It’s an honour and privilege to do this. I know I don’t own this job, the Socceroos is much bigger than Tony Popovic, but the way I view it is it’s very similar to the World Cup situation: we qualified automatically for the World Cup, there were 12 months before the World Cup, I agreed to a contract literally a week before the World Cup started.
“That didn’t affect planning for the future, I was not thinking about my tenure may end after the World Cup … [it’s] the same situation for me. I know when my contract ends. Of course, as it was with the World Cup, there’s a possibility that I don’t continue, but I’m very happy in the role and we’ll see what happens next.”
Asked whether he would now consider a longer-term extension, having rejected a four-year deal before the World Cup, Popovic said: “I’m very open to all the possibilities as I was in June, and I’m sure we’ll have discussions.”
The Athletic has named Popovic, 53, as one of a number of coaches under consideration by Crystal Palace to replace Pierre Sage, who is reportedly set to become the first manager to be sacked in the Premier League this season.
Palace are bottom of the table after 10 rounds, and are long thought to have admired Popovic, who played for the south London club between 2001 and 2006, and returned after retiring in 2011 as an assistant coach to Dougie Freedman, his former teammate and close friend.
He was previously linked to the Palace job in 2014, but said the first he’d heard of the latest speculation was when the Socceroos’ media manager told him just prior to his video call with reporters.
“The timing of this press conference is even better now, isn’t it?” he joked.
“Obviously speculation is always, as we know in football, about players and coaches … it’s speculation that happens in coaching for different reasons and at the moment, there’s speculation about the Crystal Palace job and as I just saw, my name’s been mentioned.”
Popovic’s agent, the well-connected Frank Trimboli, was the man who helped Ange Postecoglou land the job at Tottenham Hotspur in 2023, becoming the first Australian to manage in the Premier League.
Ironically, Thomas Frank – the coach who replaced Postecoglou at Spurs last season, only to be sacked after just seven wins from 26 league games – is reportedly Palace’s No.1 target.
Meanwhile, Popovic’s squad for this window has been reduced to 24 players after the late withdrawal of Nashville SC midfielder Patrick Yazbek due to injury.
Cardiff City star Alexander Robertson was also selected but dropped out for “personal reasons” which Popovic did not elaborate on, but played down concerns about the 23-year-old’s apparent elusiveness when it comes to the Socceroos – having pulled out of the last camp due to injury, despite not missing any games for his club during that period. Before that, Robertson had made himself unavailable for selection but changed his stance once Australia secured World Cup qualification.
“I respect that. I respect the players that have chosen to go in a different direction, and I certainly respect any decision he makes … when there are personal reasons, that’s obviously a matter for him,” Popovic said.
Two other regular names, Jackson Irvine and Paul Izzo, were excused because of recent or pending family arrivals.
Long-time captain Maty Ryan was again not picked, despite being fit, available and in excellent form for Spanish La Liga outfit Levante. Popovic said the Asian Cup’s postponement from January to December 2027 changed his approach to selection, and that he wanted to see goalkeepers Joe Gauci and Tom Glover, who he hasn’t assessed in person recently.
“We’ve had discussions, he understands the decision,” Popovic said.
