Harry Souttar admits he needs start playing regularly for a club if he’s to continue to being chosen for the Socceroos
Harry Souttar is a crucial part of Australia’s Asian Cup campaign, but his lack of football at club level remains a concern.
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Towering defender Harry Souttar fears for his Socceroos future due to his lack of football at club level.
Despite his name being one of the first on national coach Graham Arnold’s team sheet, Souttar admits that will end if he continues to sit on the bench for English Championship leaders Leicester City.
The 200cm centre-back has made just four appearances, only two of them as a starter, in all competitions for Leicester this season as he remains out of favour with manager Enzo Maresca.
Souttar has been linked with moves to Scotland and Saudi Arabia, as well as English Premier League cellar dwellers, but is adamant a move has “not even crossed” his mind as he concentrates on the Socceroos’ current Asian Cup campaign in Qatar.
“My full concentration is on Australia and I think it would be disrespectful to the country, my teammates, and the staff here if my head was anywhere else and thinking about these other things when we’ve got a massive tournament here,” he said.
However, the 25-year-old Scotland-born Socceroo knows he can’t afford to remain inactive at club level if he wants to continue being selected for Australia.
“It’s not been great that I’ve not got match minutes at my club, and obviously I know that can’t continue if I want to be a part of the national team,” Souttar said.
“Any player just wants to play football so I’m looking at it as a positive that I’m here (in Qatar) and I’m getting minutes and playing football, doing what I love again.
“You always want to pull that (Socceroos) shirt on. It just gives you an added something.
“You’re running on adrenaline and you’re playing football for a different reason as well, which always helps.
“There’s always that little bit more of that something special in the air.”
The battle between Kye Rowles and Cameron Burgess to be Souttar’s central defensive partner was one of coach Arnold’s tougher selection decisions entering the tournament.
Ipswich Town’s Burgess got the nod for the Socceroos’ 2-0 warm-up win over Bahrain, but it was Hearts centre-back Rowles who partnered Souttar in Australia’s opening Group B clash against India, which also ended in a 2-0 victory for Arnold’s men.
“We’ve got four centre-halves, along with Thomas Deng who’s a fantastic player. I’ve played alongside him many times at the Olympics as well,” Souttar said.
“Us four are fighting for those spots. The training levels and standards have to be high to get in a team.
“There’s no-one promised a place, so everyone’s got to bring it every day, which again, just helps the team culture really.
“What’s great about this team is that no matter who’s picked … the support from the ones that aren’t starting is more important.”
Originally published as Harry Souttar admits he needs start playing regularly for a club if he’s to continue to being chosen for the Socceroos
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