Young Socceroos’ Head Coach, Trevor Morgan has selected a strong 23-player squad to represent Australia at the Marbella Week of Football, held in Marbella, Spain during the October FIFA International Men’s Window.
The friendlies – hosted at the prestigious Marbella Football Centre – will feature U-19 teams from Belgium, Denmark, France, Switzerland and The Netherlands.
The Young Socceroos are set to face France (12 October), The Netherlands (14 October) and Denmark (17 October) in what shapes as an important development opportunity some of Australia’s most talented young players.
The squad – comprising of 16 Australian-based players – will assemble in Marbella on 9 October to commence their preparations ahead of what will be a busy playing schedule.
In addition to the selection of Isuzu UTE A-League Men talent, several players will join Morgan’s squad from European outfits including Liam Bonetig (Celtic FC), Matteo Mazzone (Eintracht Frankfurt) and Rhys Youlley (K.V.C. Westerlo).
Morgan has also selected Bailey O’Neil (Adelaide United FC) and Anthony Pavlesic (FC Bayern Munich) from the Joeys’ squad that contested the recent AFC U-17 Asian Cup Thailand 2023™.
Young Socceroos’ Head Coach, Trevor Morgan said the series of fixtures against high quality international opposition would be of significant benefit to his squad.
“We’re really looking forward to getting into camp for what will be three really challenging matches, on the back of our tournament in Lisbon in June,” Morgan said.
“The players will benefit greatly from the opportunity to play such high-quality opposition. With three games in such close proximity, it means we will share match minutes across the entire squad.
“Playing in a highly competitive environment in a national team setting is an important part of players’ individual development, it also helps to build the cohesion of this group as they progress through our elite pathway.
“It’s a fantastic group of players we have selected, some who are entering the Young Socceroos’ set up for the first time, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the broader squad responds to the challenges playing top-level opposition presents.
“We’re seeing players excel at their respective clubs week-to-week, so to be able to bring them together to train and prepare at a facility like the Marbella Football Centre will be a great experience,” Morgan concluded.
The Marbella Football Centre is one of most highly regarded facilities in Europe and has proved a popular venue for training camps for the Argentinian, French and English national teams as well as the likes of Liverpool, Inter Milan and Borussia Dortmund.
MARBELLA WEEK OF FOOTBALL – YOUNG SOCCEROOS FIXTURES
Australia v France
Thursday, 12 October
Marbella Football Centre, Marbella
Kick-off: 2.00pm (local) / 11.00pm AEDT
Australia v The Netherlands
Saturday, 14 October
Marbella Football Centre, Marbella
Kick-off: 7.00pm (local) / 4.00am AEDT (Sunday, 15 October)
Australia v Denmark
Tuesday, 17 October
La Quinta Football Centre, Marbella
Kick-off: 2.30pm (local) / 11.30pm AEDT
