Panagiotis Kikianis named on Subway Young Socceroos squad for AFC Asian Cup qualifiers

·

Subway Young Socceroos’ Head Coach, Trevor Morgan has selected a 23-player squad for Australia’s upcoming AFC U20 Asian Cup China PR 2025™ Qualifiers to be held in Abha, Saudi Arabia between 21 – 29 September 2024.

The preliminary stage of the U20 continental tournament – which serves as qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Chile 2025™ – comprises 45 teams, divided into 10 groups, featuring five of four teams and five of five teams. Qualifying groups will be contested in a centralised league format, with teams seeded into pots based on their final rankings from the tournament’s previous edition.

Having been drawn into Group D, the Subway Young Socceroos will play their fixtures out of Prince Sultan Sports City Stadium against Afghanistan, Macau, Palestine and Saudi Arabia (home).

The Subway Young Socceroos will assemble in Abha from Sunday, 15 September as they look to acclimatise to the mountainous conditions, which are more than 2,200 metres above sea level.

Panagiotis Kikianis. Photo: Adelaide United.

Morgan brings together a squad brimming with young talent from across the Isuzu UTE A-League Men competition, headlined by Miguel Di Pizio (Central Coast Mariners FC) and Thomas Waddingham (Brisbane Roar FC).

Emerging A-League Men players Luka Jovanovic, Panagiotis Kikianis, Fabian Talladira and Johnny Yull have all been selected from Adelaide United FC; while Zach Lisolajski (Perth Glory FC) and Zane Schreiber (Melbourne City FC) have also been named.

While some key European-based players are unavailable, Louis Agosti (AC Perugia Calcio), Liam Bonetig (Celtic FC), Anthony Pavlesic (FC Bayern Munich) and Rhys Youlley (KVC Westerlo) have been made available by their respective clubs, despite these Qualifiers falling outside of a Men’s FIFA International Window.

Subway Young Socceroos’ Head Coach, Trevor Morgan said his squad has been building towards these Qualifiers for some time and are looking forward to the challenge.

“Our planning over the last 12-18 months has been about progressively building depth, experience and belief while refining our style of play ahead of these Qualifiers and ultimately ensuring we’re at the U20 Asian Cup in 2025,” Morgan said.

“The staff see real talent in these players with many progressing into A-League Men squads across the country. It’s an exciting group who thoroughly deserve to be in this position.

“The boys have had some fantastic results against difficult opposition recently and we’ve shown what we’re capable of when we play our football – it’s important we now execute that in a tournament-style setting with plenty at stake.

“We know the conditions and the opposition will be tough, especially with so much to play for and securing a result in this type of situation will not only galvanise us as a group but illustrate the mentality we’ve built throughout this cycle.”

The 10 group Winners and five best second-placed teams will qualify for the 42nd edition of the AFC U20 Asian Cup™ which will be held in China PR from 6 – 23 February 2025.

For a complete list of Qualifying Groups for the AFC U20 Asian Cup China PR 2025™ click here.

greek film festival 2025

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

Vamvakou: A mountain village reborn in Greece’s Laconia

The mountain village of Vamvakou in Laconia has transformed into a vibrant community blending tradition and innovation.

Athens ranks among top cities for remote work and vacation

Athens has secured 12th place in the 2025 “Work from Anywhere Barometer” by the International Workplace Group (IWG).

Sponge park in Trikala offers a vision for a greener Europe

Greece’s first “sponge park” has taken shape in Trikala, Thessaly, offering a practical model for climate resilience rooted in nature.

Dressing Mediterranean diasporas: From pompom shoes to ‘fully sick’ wog wear

From pompom shoes to branded tracksuits – discover how Mediterranean diasporas in Australia have expressed identity across generations.

Niki Louca shares her traditional recipe for Karidopita (walnut cake)

Niki Louca from My Greek Kitchen shares her favourite recipe for Karidopita (walnut cake) with The Greek Herald.

You May Also Like

Inaugural Heart Health round in NSW is a game breaker

It’s hard not to feel emotional when you see the impact you make for the good of the community and the interest of the next generation.

Greece abolishes ATM withdrawal fees

From Monday, August 11, banks in Greece will no longer charge fees for cash withdrawals from ATMs operated by Greek lenders.

Trump rejects reports of US military base closure in Greece

United States President Donald Trump has dismissed reports that the US plans to shut down its military operations in Alexandroupoli, Greece.