Never let anyone tell you that a bit of hubris is a bad thing. Particularly if you just so happen to be an elite sportsperson.
Hell, in most professional athletic pursuits, it’s practically a job requirement – the utter belief that you are the absolute best, capable of beating anyone who competes against you senseless.
‘Course there’s healthy hubris, and then there’s… y’know… this.
Harry Kewell, undoubtedly one of Australia’s all-time great soccer stars, was saddled with the somewhat unenviable task of selecting his own personal Best Socceroos XI side for ESPN FC.
Kewell’s international career is about as sparkling as it gets in terms of Australian representative football – 56 caps, two World Cups – including the 2006 campaign that saw Australia make the second round, two Asian Cups, the 1997 Confederations Cup final, and 17 goals for his country. A record that’s definitely not to be sneezed at.
And for his best XI, Kewell picked from his era of representation – from 1996 to 2012. Which seems fair enough.
The bulk of the squad is made up of members of the 2006 World Cup side, with Cup coach Guus Hiddink selected in the manager’s role.
The one huge and gaping omission in Kewell’s side, however, is the absence of Australia’s all-time leading scorer Tim Cahill.
Kewell instead elected to put himself in his own all-time XI side in the strikers slot alongside Mark Viduka, leaving Cahill completely off the field.
“I’m definitely playing up front! And of course, it has be Dukes [Australia’s 2006 World Cup captain] as well.”
Other curious omissions from the side include John Aloisi, and Ned Zelic, among others.
None of Kewell’s selections were members of Australia’s successful 2015 Asian Cup champion side. And, in fact, most of the selections come from the English Premier League exports that dotted Australia’s so-called “Golden Generation.”
With a 4-4-2 lineup, Kewell’s team featured Mark Schwarzer as goalkeeper, with Craig Moore and Lucas Neill as central defenders, Stan Lazaridis and Kevin Muscat as fullbacks, Vince Grella and Josip Skoko in the centre midfield, Mark Bresciano and Brett Emerton as attacking midfielders, and Harry Kewell with Mark Viduka as strikers.
Cahill’s international career began in 2004, and has racked up 83 caps for 39 goals.
Kewell currently coaches the Watford Under 21s side.
Photo: Robert Cianflone via Getty Images.
via ESPN FC.
