Teenage sensation Lucas Herrington will play without fear at the FIFA World Cup thanks largely to some sage advice from his fellow Socceroos defender Alessandro Circati.
Herrington’s meteoric rise has him on the cusp of becoming the youngest Australian player to ever start in a World Cup match.
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The 18-year-old former Brisbane centre-back forced his way into Socceroos coach Tony Popovic’s World Cup plans on the back of his outstanding form for American Major League Soccer club Colorado, which he joined in January from the Roar.
Herrington debuted for Australia in March’s FIFA Series and has started in all three of his Socceroos appearances.
“It has been a lot, but it’s a dream come true to make the final squad and hopefully I can get some minutes,” the Queenslander said.
“I’ve worked my whole life for an opportunity like this. It came sooner than I thought, but I’ll just try to take it with both hands, just enjoy it and really make the country proud.”
Herrington paid tribute to his teammates, including Italy-based star Circati, who at just 22 has established himself as one of the first names on the Socceroos’ teamsheet.
“He was tops in bringing me in and just giving me little tips just to plan my game, like don’t worry about mistakes,” Herrington said of Circati.
“He’s another young defender, so it’s great for me to see that example of him playing in a top league around the world. He’s one for me to look up to.”
Herrington’s belief has grown from the “trust” that Popovic has in him.
“It just gives you confidence to go do your thing, I’ve loved the opportunity that the gaffer (Popovic) has given me here,” he said.
Socceroos great Mark Schwarzer has similar belief in the young gun.
“I’ve been really impressed by Lucas Herrington from what I’ve seen so far,” said the man with more Socceroos appearances than any other player.
“For such a young guy, he seems so relaxed and so much like he’s been there for a long-time. That’s impressive.”
Herrington’s talent was identified early by his former Roar coach Ruben Zadkovich, who in October 2024 labelled him the “best defender in Australian football”.
“Ruben was my first professional coach. He gave me my debut for the Roar, so I’ll forever be grateful to him for that opportunity. Without that, I probably wouldn’t be here today,” he said.
“Ruben was tops and really instrumental in getting me here, so I’ll always be grateful to him.”
The Socceroos meet Switzerland in San Diego on Sunday (AEST) in their final warm-up match before their opening Group D World Cup clash against Turkiye in Vancouver on June 14 (AEST).