US football pundit Mike Grella has doubled down on his criticism of the Socceroos while labelling Australians “insecure”.

Grella kicked off the verbal spat between both teams when he said the Americans should have no trouble beating the Socceroos, declaring them a “lay-up”.

And he did little to defuse the situation when speaking to ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday AEST – in fact he widened his criticism to include Australian fans who condemned him for his commentary.

“They caused an upset against Türkiye. They had 20 per cent possession of the ball. They conceded 30 shots, which is a ridiculous amount, but they went on to win,” he said.

American football pundit Mike Grella CBS

“I was gonna come on here originally and say some nice stuff about them, but … now the fan base has gone a little too far.

“The messages I’m getting from the Australia fan base is about the country, about us as a country, about the US and about how it sucks in all these different categories.

“So, you know, really, it’s been unbelievable. They wear a yellow shirt. I think that maybe they’re getting themselves confused with Brazil or another team that’s won something in the past. They’ve never won anything.”

Grella continued:

“I look up what Australians are good at. I see cricket, I see rugby, maybe outback. I mean, I’m sure they got some wallet safaris out there.

“But on (Saturday morning AEST), I think they’re going to come into a team that it’s a little bit more their time that has a little bit more quality, like I’ve said before. And I think that we’ll see a US win.

“I played with Australian guys in the past. There’s been some legends of the game that are Australian. I love Australians. I don’t think I’ve ever met a soft Australian. They’re tough, right? They’ve got a game that’s called Aussie Rules that is incredibly physical.

The Socceroos celebrate Nestory Irankunda’s goal. Getty Images

“But I’ll tell you one thing they are, it’s insecure. It’s insecure about football, and it’s insecure about (Saturday) because I think they’re in for a rude awakening.

“I think there’s gonna be a massive reality check.”

Grella works for the CBS/Paramount TV group in the US and played most of his career with lower-level English sides.

He made one single appearance in the Championship for Leeds United in 2010-11. Apart from that, he played for the likes of Carlisle United, Swindon Town, Brentford, Bury and Scunthorpe United.

He also played in Denmark and the US and holds the record for the quickest goal in MLS history, surpassing Tim Cahill after he found the back of the net in the first seven seconds of a match in 2015.

Grella played youth matches for the USA but never played at senior international level.