Injured Australian pair Mathew Leckie and Jacob Italiano have been ruled out of the World Cup, ahead of their last-32 clash with Egypt. The Socceroos will now complete the tournament with 24 players.
Striker Leckie, participating in his fourth World Cup, sustained a hamstring injury during the Socceroos' 2-0 Group D loss to the United States. He did not feature in their subsequent 0-0 draw with Paraguay.
Right-back Italiano played in matches against Turkey and the United States but injured his groin in training, causing him to miss the Paraguay clash.
"Jacob Italiano and Mathew Leckie will unfortunately miss the remainder of the World Cup through injury," the Socceroos said in a statement. "Everyone at Football Australia and the Socceroos would like to wish Jacob and Mathew all the best in their recovery and thank them for their contributions during the campaign."
Their absence is a significant blow to coach Tony Popovic, whose team faces Mohamed Salah's Egypt in Dallas on July 3 in a bid to reach the last 16.
Australia defender Aziz Behich expressed his disappointment for his Melbourne City teammate Leckie, who overcame an injury-wrecked season to make the tournament. "I'm gutted for him," Behich said. "But it's all part of football. He wished us all well and he said he'll be following us. He's given everything to be here and help us."
Behich, who impressed as left wing-back against Paraguay, said confidence was high heading into the all-or-nothing Egypt showdown. "We know what we wanted to accomplish, and the first step was getting out of the group stages," he told reporters. "We've managed to do that. Now it's game by game. It's knockout football. It's a lot different to what it was. But the boys know that and we're full of energy and excitement."
