Socceroos hopeful Nicholas D’Agostino returns to Brisbane Roar A-League from Vikings FK
“It was just more so the fact I just need consistency in minutes, that’s the biggest thing. Before the last national camp I think I had a total of 300 minutes last season with the injury and lack of game time.
“I want to play 90 minutes back-to-back, back-to-back, week in week out, and put the ball in the back of the net as many times as I can. If I keep doing that, I think I’ll be in good stead to make that camp in March and … put me in the best spot to make that World Cup squad.”
D’Agostino confirmed his loan to the Roar was only through to the end of the A-League campaign, ensuring he would still be able to take part in Viking’s Champions League qualifiers after the World Cup in what would be the realisation of “another dream of mine”.
“The possibility of that is nice to think about as well, but my full focus is on Brisbane now day to day, and then obviously the long-term goal is those six months until the World Cup,” D’Agostino said.
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D’Agostino witnessed his first World Cup as a fan when Popovic and the famed golden era of Socceroos reached the final 16 2006, and came agonisingly close to featuring at the 2022 spectacle in Qatar where he was named in squads for the qualifiers only to miss out on the final line-up.
The 27-year-old will vie with a congested list of contenders for a place in the forward line come the June tournament, among them teenage sensation Nestory Irankunda.
Irankunda captured headlines when he became the second-youngest Australian player to score a hat-trick while playing for Adelaide United, before he then set an A-League transfer fee record upon his move to German powerhouse, Bayern Munich.
The 19-year-old has since been signed by English side Watford, where he has become a crowd favourite, and has been a Socceroos’ regular since his 2024 debut.
However, D’Agostino is relishing the challenge that awaits him to avenge his 2022 World Cup disappointment.
“Injuries have played a part and obviously the lack of game time, but now I’ve got back into those last couple of camps I’m as hungry as ever,” D’Agostino said.
“Obviously, I was a little bit disappointed not to make the last World Cup squad, but now it’s just driven more to put my best foot forward to make this one. There’s a lot of competition at club level wherever I am, and at the national level it’s even higher.
“It’s a lot of competition, but I love competition, so bring it on.”
D’Agostino will play his first game for the Roar, having previously donned the club colours 35 times between 2015 and 2019, on Saturday when they take on Adelaide at Suncorp Stadium.
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