Levante star Mat Ryan left out of Socceroos squad
Australia coach Tony Popovic has omitted 105-cap former captain Mathew Ryan from his squad for friendlies against Brazil in Townsville and Brisbane later this month, the Socceroos' last home matches before the Asian Cup early next year.
Ryan, 34, went to this year's World Cup as skipper and presumed starting goalkeeper but was dropped for Patrick Beach and brought on only as a substitute for the penalty shootout as Australia lost to Egypt in the Round of 32.
The 26-man squad includes Beach and 15 other players who were involved in the World Cup campaign, as well as seven uncapped players. Jordan Bos, Cristian Volpato and Cameron Burgess were unavailable because of injury.
Midfielders Riley McGree and Patrick Yazbek were recalled after missing the World Cup because of injury.
Australia plays five-time world champion Brazil in Townsville on 25 September and again in Brisbane four days later. It also plays away friendlies against Qatar and Jordan before the 7 January - 5 February Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
"We have picked a squad with an eye on the AFC Asian Cup 2027 and an eye on the future, and it's a great opportunity for us to continue growing as a team," Popovic said.
Socceroos Squad: Patrick Beach, Kealey Adamson, Paul Izzo, Aziz Behich, Kasey Bos, Jacob Chapman, Alessandro Circati, Milos Degenek, Jason Geria, Lucas Herrington, Dylan Leonard, Harry Souttar, Yaya Dukuly, Jackson Irvine, Jacob Italiano, Riley McGree, Connor Metcalfe, Aiden O'Neill, Paul Okon-Engstler, Alexander Robertson, Patrick Yazbek, Marcus Younis, Eli Adams, Nestory Irankunda, Mohamed Toure, Tete Yengi.
