Tony Popovic

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Template:Short description Template:Use Australian English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football biography

Tony Popovic (born 4 July 1973) is an Australian association football manager and former player. He is currently head coach of the Australia national football team. He guided the team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, thus becoming the first Australian to play for and manage the team at a World Cup.

As a player Popovic's usual position was centre-back. Starting in 1989 at Sydney United he went on to play for Sanfrecce Hiroshima of Japan and Premier League side Crystal Palace, among other clubs. He appeared with the Australian national team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where he played against reigning World Champions Brazil.

Popovic started his coaching career in 2008 with Sydney FC. After a brief stint as assistant manager at Crystal Palace he was chosen as the inaugural manager of Western Sydney Wanderers at the start of the 2012–13 season. His major achievements as a manager are winning the 2012–13 A-League Premiership and 2014 AFC Champions League with the Wanderers, the 2018–19 A-League Premiership with Perth Glory and an Australia Cup with Melbourne Victory in 2022. He holds the record of coaching the most A-League Grand Final losses with 5 to the end of the 2023/2024 season. He was appointed as coach of Australia in 2024 and led them to qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

He is the father of Kristian and Gabriel Popovic, both of whom are also professional footballers.

Club career

File:Tony Popovic 2.jpg
Popovic playing for Sydney FC in 2008
File:Tony Popovic.jpg
Popovic playing for Sydney FC in 2008

Early career

Popovic was born in Sydney to a Croatian family,[1] and grew up in Fairfield, New South Wales.[2] He began his career with Sydney United. He rose through the youth ranks, making 162 appearances in seven years for the first team, before moving to play in the J1 League. Popovic signed with Sanfrecce Hiroshima where he stayed for five years scoring 13 goals in 94 appearances.

Crystal Palace

Popovic signed for Crystal Palace on a free transfer in August 2001 from Sanfrecce Hiroshima. He became an integral part of the Palace defence, eventually becoming club captain. He played more than 120 matches for Crystal Palace. In his last season he played for Crystal Palace in 21 Premier League matches. In total he made more than 120 appearances for the club.[3]

Popovic's contract with Palace expired at the end of June 2006, and he decided against accepting the club's offer of a new contract. He instead moved to Qatar club, Al-Arabi.

Sydney FC

In 2007, with the growth of the A-League and slight homesickness, Popovic moved to Sydney FC, signing a two-year deal, with coach Branko Culina also announcing him the club's captain.[4] Popovic scored his first goal on 28 October 2007 from a corner to beat the Mariners 3–2 in front of his home crowd of 17,850.

Popovic announced his retirement on 11 November 2008 after nearly 20 years as a professional footballer.[5]

International career

Popovic competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona for the Australia U23 team. He began his full international career in 1995 with the Australia national team. Over the next eleven years Popovic made 58 appearances for the Socceroos, scoring 8 goals.

The highlight of Popovic's career came in 2006 when the Australian national team qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup under the management of Guus Hiddink. He took part in both legs in the qualifying match against Uruguay. Being replaced in the first half of the second leg, due to injury, by Harry Kewell. The tall defender was named in the competing squad and made his World Cup debut against Brazil on 18 June. He suffered a calf injury 40 minutes into the game and was replaced by Mark Bresciano for the second half.[5] His injury ruled him out of Australia's last match in the group stage, against Croatia, and their second round loss against eventual winners, Italy.

On 4 October 2006, Popovic announced his retirement from the Socceroos.[6]

His final game was a friendly against Paraguay that month. He scored his eighth international goal, from a Mark Bresciano free kick, in his final minute on field to put Australia ahead, 1–0 in a game that finished 1–1.[5]

Coaching career

File:Tony Popovic-2010-08-03.jpg
Popovic in 2010.

After retiring, Popovic moved into an assistant coach's role with Sydney FC,[7] where he remained until February 2011, when he returned to England and to Crystal Palace as first team coach,[8] after former teammate Dougie Freedman was appointed manager.[9]

Western Sydney Wanderers

On 17 May 2012, Popovic was announced as inaugural manager of A-League club Western Sydney Wanderers.[10] He joined the club on a four seasons deal after requesting to be released from the final year of his contracted role as assistant manager of Crystal Palace.[10] In Wanderers' first season, Popovic was named A-League Coach of the Year after finishing first in the league.[11] In the 2013–14 season Popovic led Wanderers to the 2014 AFC Champions League Final in the club's first attempt in the competition. They defeated Al-Hilal in the final, becoming the first Australian team to win the tournament. As a result of this achievement, Popovic was named as the 2014 AFC Coach of the Year.[12] With poor recruiting, the loss of assistant coach Ante Milicic, and a gruelling schedule of matches, the 2014–15 season saw Popovic's team finish ninth in the league and eliminated from the group stage of the 2015 AFC Champions League. Despite an unfavorable season Popovic signed a new three-season deal with Western Sydney Wanderers, which would keep him at the club helm until 2018.[13]

Karabükspor

On 1 October 2017, Popovic made a shock announcement that he had resigned from Western Sydney Wanderers to coach Turkish Süper Lig club Karabükspor. It came less than a week out from the start of the 2017–18 A-League season.[14] After nine games, on 15 December 2017, he was sacked by the club and was owed AUD$1.4M compensation. The club's entire boardroom quit during his time at the club and after he left, the club went into financial administration, began a relegation freefall and were ultimately dissolved in late 2022.[15]

Perth Glory

On 11 May 2018, Popovic was confirmed as Perth Glory's new manager following the dismissal of Kenny Lowe at the end of the 2017–18 season.[16] His first game in charge was a pre-season friendly against Chelsea which the Glory lost 0–1.[17] Under Popovic's management, Perth won the 2018–19 A-League premiership.

Xanthi FC

On 26 August 2020, shortly after coaching Perth to a 2–0 loss to Sydney FC in the A-League semi finals, Popovic activated a contractual clause allowing him to leave the club for a European team, after signing with Greek Super League side Xanthi FC, that was bought by Greek-Australian business tycoon Bill Papas. He lasted five months, being sacked with the club in 5th place and four points from the top. Goalkeeping coach Zeljko Kalac stated later that Popovic was sabotaged and fired due to the owners wanting more control over decisions. Papas would later be accused by Australian banking authorities over an alleged loan fraud scheme that cost multiple banks over $500 million AUD in total.[18][19]

Melbourne Victory

On 21 April 2021, Melbourne Victory appointed Popovic head coach on a three-year contract to replace Grant Brebner and Steve Kean, who coached the team to last place in the previous season.[20] Popovic had early success, bringing the club back to the top of the A-League table after eight games and winning the 2021 FFA Cup on 5 February 2022.

After guiding Melbourne Victory to the 2024 A-League Grand Final, which they lost to the Central Coast Mariners,[21] Popovic left Melbourne Victory at the end of the season.[22]

Australia

Popovic was named as the head coach of the Australian national team on 23 September 2024.[23]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[24]
Club Season League National cupTemplate:Efn League cupTemplate:Efn Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Sydney UnitedTemplate:Efn 1989–90 National Soccer League 13 0 13 0
1990–91 17 1 17 1
1991–92 20 1 20 1
1992–93 24 2 24 2
1993–94 National Soccer League 27 2 27 2
1994–95 25 3 25 3
1995–96 29 4 29 4
1996–97 7 2 7 2
Total 162 15 162 15
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1997 J1 League 11 0 0 0 6 0 17 0
1998 25 4 3 1 2 1 30 6
1999 23 6 5 0 1 0 29 6
2000 21 3 2 0 3 2 26 5
2001 7 0 0 0 0 0 7 0
Total 87 13 10 1 12 3 109 17
Crystal Palace 2001–02 First Division 20 2 1 0 21 2
2002–03 36 4 3 0 40 4
2003–04 30 1 1 0 31 1
2004–05 Premier League 23 0 23 0
2005–06 League Championship 12 0 2 0 1 0 15 0
Total 119 7 5 0 119 7
Al-Arabi 2006–07 Qatar Stars League 17 2 17 2
Sydney FC 2007–08 A-League 20 1 20 1
2008–09 7 0 7 0
Total 27 1 27 1
Career total 412 38 15 1 12 3 439 42

Template:Notelist

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Australia 1995 8 0
1996 10 0
1997 2 0
1998 2 0
1999 0 0
2000 7 1
2001 10 5
2002 0 0
2003 2 1
2004 5 0
2005 8 0
2006 4 1
Total 58 8
Scores and results list Australia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Popovic goal.
List of international goals scored by Tony Popovic
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 19 June 2000 Papeete, Tahiti {{ Template:Yesno alias = Cook Islands flag alias = Flag of the Cook Islands.svg flag alias-1973 = Flag of the Cook Islands 1973.svg link alias-football = Cook Islands men's national football team size = name = variant = altlink = national football team }} ||
10–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || style="text-align:center"|17–0 || OFC Nations Cup
2 9 April 2001 BCU International Stadium, Australia {{ Template:Yesno alias = Tonga flag alias = Flag of Tonga.svg flag alias-naval = Naval Ensign of Tonga.svg Tongan Navy flag alias-navy = Naval Ensign of Tonga.svg Tongan Navy link alias-army = Tongan Land Force size = name = altlink = national football team variant = }} ||
15–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || style="text-align:center"|22–0 ||2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
3 11 April 2001 BCU International Stadium, Australia {{ Template:Yesno alias = American Samoa flag alias = Flag of American Samoa.svg flag alias-1900 = Flag of the United States (1896-1908).svg flag alias-1908 = US flag 46 stars.svg flag alias-1912 = US flag 48 stars.svg flag alias-1959 = US flag 49 stars.svg link alias-football = American Samoa men's national football team size = name = altlink = national football team variant = }} ||
5–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|31–0 || rowspan="2"|2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
4
6–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
5 16 April 2001 BCU International Stadium, Australia {{ Template:Yesno alias = Samoa shortname alias = Samoa flag alias = Flag of Samoa.svg flag alias-colonial = Flag of the Samoa Trust Territory.svg size = name = altlink = national football team altvar = football variant = }} ||
5–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|11–0 || rowspan="2"|2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
6
11–0
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7 12 February 2003 Boleyn Ground, London, England {{ Template:Yesno alias = England flag alias = Flag of England.svg flag alias-naval = English White Ensign 1620.svg link alias-naval = Royal Navy flag alias-navy = English White Ensign 1620.svg link alias-navy = Royal Navy link alias-cricket = England cricket team empty = England Saxons size = name = variant = altlink = national football team altvar = football }} ||
1–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || style="text-align:center"|3–1 || Friendly
8 7 September 2006 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, Australia {{ Template:Yesno alias = Paraguay flag alias = Flag of Paraguay.svg flag alias-1812 = Flag of Paraguay (1812-1826).svg flag alias-1826 = Flag of Paraguay (1826-1842).svg flag alias-1842 = Flag of Paraguay (1842-1954).svg flag alias-1954 = Flag of Paraguay (1954-1988).svg flag alias-1988 = Flag of Paraguay (1988-1990).svg flag alias-1990 = Flag of Paraguay (1990–2013).svg link alias-naval = Paraguayan Navy link alias-air force = Paraguayan Air Force link alias-army = Paraguayan Army link alias-navy = Paraguayan Navy size = name = variant = altlink = national football team }} ||
1–0
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || Friendly

Managerial statistics

Template:Updated[25][26]

Team From To Record
G W D L Win %
Template:Flagicon Western Sydney Wanderers 17 May 2012 1 October 2017

Template:WDL

Template:Flagicon Karabükspor 1 October 2017 15 December 2017

Template:WDL

Template:Flagicon Perth Glory 11 May 2018 2 September 2020

Template:WDL

Template:Flagicon Xanthi 2 September 2020 22 February 2021

Template:WDL

Template:Flagicon Melbourne Victory 21 April 2021 12 June 2024

Template:WDL

Template:Flagicon Australia 23 September 2024 Present

Template:WDL

Total

Template:WDLtot

Honours

Player

Australia

Manager

Western Sydney Wanderers

Perth Glory

  • A-League Men: Premiers 2018–19
  • A-League Men Finals runner-up: 2019

Melbourne Victory

Assistant Coach for Sydney FC

Individual

References

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  10. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  28. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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External links

Template:Sister project

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