Australia will be without experienced duo Mathew Leckie and Jacob Italiano for the remainder of the World Cup after both players were ruled out through injury ahead of the Socceroos' Round of 32 clash against Egypt, reports AFP.
Football Australia confirmed on Friday that Leckie and Italiano would play no further part in the tournament, leaving coach Tony Popovic with a 24-man squad for the knockout stage.
Leckie, featuring in his fourth World Cup, suffered a hamstring injury during Australia's 2-0 Group D defeat to the United States and was unavailable for Thursday's goalless draw with Paraguay.
Italiano, who started against Turkey and the United States, sustained a groin injury in training and also missed the Paraguay match.
"Jacob Italiano and Mathew Leckie will unfortunately miss the remainder of the World Cup through injury," Football Australia 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."
The injuries are a setback for Popovic as Australia prepare to face Mohamed Salah's Egypt in Dallas on July 3, with a place in the Round of 16 at stake.
Defender Aziz Behich said the squad was disappointed to lose Leckie, his Melbourne City teammate, who had battled through an injury-hit domestic season to make the World Cup.
"I'm gutted for him," Behich said. "But it's all part of football. He wished us all well and said he'll be following us. He's given everything to be here and help us."
Despite the injuries, Behich said Australia remained confident after advancing from the group stage.
"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, which is completely different. But the boys know that, and we're full of energy and excitement heading into the next challenge."
Bd-pratidin English/ Jisan
