Connor Metcalfe has fired back at the latest American criticism of the Socceroos, calling it “absolute rubbish” and saying he was “just sick of it” as Australia closes in on a World Cup meeting with the United States.
The midfielder’s comments land now because Australia and the United States are due to meet in Seattle on June 20 AEST in Group D, a game that has already picked up edge from a public spat over how far the Socceroos can go. Metcalfe said he had seen the US commentary and wanted it stopped before the teams meet on the field.
“I’ve seen all the US stuff and I’m just sick of it, to be honest,” Metcalfe said. “All this talk, let’s just wait for the game. Whatever happens, happens. It’s just so much rubbish, honestly. I’m just sick of it.”
That was a direct answer to a fresh round of criticism from Alexi Lalas, who described Australia as an “average” team and said they would struggle to keep the ball or score against stronger opponents. Metcalfe did not bother softening his response. He waved it off and pointed back to the match itself.
There is plenty behind that irritation. Australia lost 2-1 to the United States in a friendly last October, and the game carried a sharp edge from the start, with tempers flaring repeatedly after a series of dangerous challenges on Christian Pulisic and others. USA captain Chris Richards, who also traded in the heat of that night, later said, “They’re lucky it was a friendly. I was ready to go. And if [the referee] didn’t give me a s--- yellow in the corner, I probably would’ve killed somebody.”
Metcalfe expects the same mood when the sides meet again. “We’ll just wait and we’ll play. It’ll be a good game. We had the friendly against them. It was tense, it was feisty and it’s probably going to be the exact same,” he said. Australia opens its World Cup campaign against Turkey in Vancouver, Canada, next Saturday AEST, while the United States starts Group D against Paraguay.
The backdrop is not ideal for either side. Tony Popovic has been telling the Socceroos they will do their talking on the pitch, and Australia’s last friendly before the tournament opener comes against Switzerland in San Diego on Sunday at 5am AEST. Richards, meanwhile, is in doubt for the World Cup after an ankle injury with Crystal Palace ruled him out of the USA’s final warm-up against Germany this weekend and forced him to miss Palace’s 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano in the UEFA Conference League final.
That leaves the Seattle meeting as the next hard marker. By then, the noise around the Socceroos will either look like empty talk or the first sign of a rivalry that is only getting louder.
