Cristian Volpato has spoken for the first time since his first Socceroos call-up admitting the “big decision” had been “on my head 24/7 for quite a while”.
The Sassuolo attacker was a bombshell selection on the eve of the deadline and Tony Popovic, speaking to the media in San Diego on Saturday, revealed he’s still playing catchup with his fitness to meet the levels of the rest of the group.
In an interview with Football Australia’s media team, Volpato walked through the decision that has been a constant talking point in Australian football for five years.
“I’m Italian and I’m Australian, so it’s actually been a big decision that’s always been on my head, twenty four seven for quite a while,” he said.
“Playing for Italy also was good and amazing but maybe I think when I was eighteen maybe I was a bit too young and maybe I was a bit too scared to make the change straight away.
How to watch Socceroos v Switzerland, Australia’s last game before the World Cup
Why Popovic addressed the media from the scene of iconic Tiger Woods triumph
“So maybe I was in my comfort zone a bit playing for Italy.
“So I think really something I don’t know in my heart just said, I think it’s time to come home.”
He continued: “Like a lot of Australians, (we) were brought up being both, being something else and Australian. And obviously you don’t want to choose one or the other. It’s been hard, obviously I do feel Australian, so it felt really good coming here and being brought in by the boys and speaking English.”
What was the turning point in his decision making?
“Playing in a World Cup for your nation is something unreal and yeah, I think, playing for Italy also was good and amazing, but maybe I think when I was 18, maybe I was a bit too young.”
Popovic says Volpato is playing catch up with his fitness as he vies to become a difference maker for the Socceroos at the World Cup.
All things going to plan, the Sassuolo attacker should make his Socceroos debut in San Diego against Switzerland on Sunday AEST – but – Popovic revealed the 22-year-old is still lagging when it comes to his fitness.
“We just have to get him fit, he hasn’t played a lot of football and he had eight to nine days off before he joined us,” he explained.
“If I compare him to the group he’s probably at the bottom in terms of his conditioning right now.
“But he’s working hard, he’s trying to get up to speed and we’ve seen some good inroads in the last couple of days.”
Volpato might play in Serie A when with his club duties, but the work in Oakland has left him in no doubt as to the quality he has just joined.
“I’ve also been shocked by the level of how professional it is here and also the level of the the players and the trainings,” he added.
“It’s really, really high.
“I’ve been really happy with that and also, with the fans it was amazing, seeing all the people in the green and gold and cheering us on.”
Volpato’s late inclusion led to questions about how quickly he would integrate into the squad, which he has joined for the first time.
“He’s fine. He’s a good player, a good young player, talented, good young man,” Popovic said.
“Now that I’ve had that time with him in February, there’s no doubts about him as a person or as a player.”
Meanwhile, the game against Switzerland will give Popovic a chance to look at a range of players, including Volpato.
“Every game you want to try and win, but of course our focus is on Turkey and and it was that way with the Mexico game.
“To win the match but with some ideas and to try some certain players in certain positions and have some ideas for that first game for Turkey and this will be the same.
“Try and get more players minutes. Because there are some players that haven’t played since early May and some even earlier.
“So you really need to try and give some minutes to have just the game time and confidence in themselves that if required next week that they’re ready to go. So we’re just trying to balance continuity with giving minutes to players. So if we get that and hopefully everyone’s healthy after the game, then we’ll be very happy.”
One of those players in contention for a debut is striker Tete Yengi.
“He had a lot more game time, than Cristian, but we tried to bring his loads quite low because he really had a busy schedule playing a lot of games, a lot of minutes in every three or four days and something he wasn’t accustomed to until he got to Japan. so we just try to keep him healthy and strong.”