Newly appointed Socceroos coach Bert van Marwijk has confirmed rumours of him having held talks with Brad Jones regarding the upcoming World Cup.
Brad Jones, who hasn’t made an appearance for the national team since 2014, is currently enjoying a brilliant run of form in the Dutch Eredivisie with Feyenoord.
Despite being overlooked for the duration of Ange Postecoglou’s time in charge, Jones could yet make a return to the national team in the coming months. The Socceroos are set to play Norway and Colombia in the coming months as they prepare for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Bert van Marwijk said that Brad Jones was positive in his attitude towards the national team and that “it was a very pleasant conversation…I’m glad about that”.
Jones has only made four appearances for the national team during his career, however his latest run of form could seem him earn more time in Australian colours.
Brad Jones left Liverpool in 2016 for Dutch side NEC Nijmegen before attracting interest from giants Feyenoord and keeping a huge 17 clean sheets to lead the club to its first Eredivisie title in 18 years in his first season.
Prior to Jones’ long absence from the national team, he had been a member of the 2010 World Cup squad before having to pull out as a result of his young son being diagnosed with leukaemia.
There were reports that Ange Postecoglou was keen to restore the goalkeeper to the squad in 2017 but Brad Jones turned it down wanting to be assured the number one spot with a lot of competition in the current set up.
Making things difficult for the new Socceroos coach, van Marwijk, is current number one Maty Ryan also enjoying a successful run of form in the English Premier League for Brighton. Most recently he saved a last minute penalty to salvage a draw against Stoke City.
Elsewhere, Danny Vukovic has also been performing well for Belgian outfit KRC Genk having moved to the Jupiler Pro League from Sydney FC at the end of the 2017 season.
Mark Schwarzer has previously questioned why Brad Jones hasn’t been included in the Australian squad saying that “he’s in the best form of his career…he deserves a call up”.
New Socceroos coach van Marwijk will have plenty to think about when selecting his squad for the upcoming friendlies against Norway and Colombia as the battle for the number goalkeeping spot heats up.
The Socceroos will play Norway on March 23 before coming up against James Rodriguez’s Colombia on March 28 in preparation for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.