From a World Cup -threatening knee injury to marking Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe at soccer's biggest tournament, it's been a wild ride for Australia defender Harry Souttar.
“We controlled them so well in the first half,” Australia midfielder Jackson Irvine said. “That one little moment, that one half a meter you give him in the box, we’ve seen it hundreds of times, he is so ruthless, so clinical, ultimately that was the difference.”
That Souttar was even on the same field as Messi was an achievement in itself. Especially after recovering from a ruptured ACL, which he injured in a World Cup qualifier against Saudi Arabia in Sydney last November. His road to Qatar was long, arduous and at times lonely as he worked individually in the gym at Stoke’s training ground, watching his teammates out on the field doing what he couldn’t.Hardly ideal preparation before heading into a World Cup, let alone coming up against two of the best players on the planet.“It’s inspirational, honestly,” McGree said. “I’m really close with Harry off the pitch, but on the pitch he’s a warrior, he’s got quality and he can move for the size he is.
In Australia’s opening Group D game, the team faced Mbappe and defending champion France. Mbappe scored in the 4-1 victory, but Souttar and the Aussies recovered to secure a spot in the knockout round for only the second time in its history after reaching the round of 16 in 2006.For Souttar, however, his brush with the greatest will live forever.AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.
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