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Aussie actor Firass Dirani has given the performance of his life for a video announcing the Socceroos 2022 World Cup squad, but a very ambitious claim he makes about the national team is sure to cause a stir.
The 38-year-old, who starred in Underbelly, House Husbands and Mel Gibson war epic Hacksaw Ridge, boldly predicted that the Australian side was ready to take on the world’s best teams in the final in Qatar.
That’s despite the Socceroos narrowly making it through qualifying and facing what some consider an almost impossible task against the might of France and Denmark in their group.
However, the hype video that Dirani starred in certainly pulled the heart, but was it a bit optimistic?
Australian actor Firass Dirani starred in a slick hype video announcing the Socceroos World Cup roster for the tournament in Qatar later this month.
“The sixth team to represent our nation of 26 million on the global stage,” he enthuses in the video, which was posted to Socceroos’ social media pages.
“France, Tunisia, Denmark and whoever comes after, just more challenges to overcome.
“This story is never finished. One team, one World Cup, one jersey – our turn for the 100 . to give [per cent] again,” Dirani said.
Believing the Socceroos will make it to the final is an ambitious statement that will make even the most ardent Australian fans frown.
Australia will take on 2018 champions France in Group D in this month’s tournament
Denmark strong side features Arsenal star Christian Eriksen, with the Nordic country ranked 10th in the world
Australia ranks 38th in the world eight places lower than the African country of Tunisia, which has just under 12 million inhabitants.
Never mind the 2018 champions, France, who are fourth in the world, or Denmark (10th), which have superstars like Christian Eriksen, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Andreas Christensen on their side.
Nevertheless, despite many fans citing the ambitious goal of getting past the group of death – and many supporters questioning the omissions of Sainsbury, Langerak and Rogic – other supporters said the promo got them excited for the Cup.
“This is epic,” “fired up,” and “powerful stuff” was the general consensus on Dirani’s video, with the acclaimed Underbelly actor’s smooth delivery laced with intense passion and faith.
Martin Boyle, chosen to go to the World Cup in Qatar, was congratulated by his wife Rachel on the social media post with the slick squad announcement
Attacker Martin Boyle’s wife also commented on the video, writing that she was incredibly proud to see her husband selected for the biggest stage of them all.
‘Incredibly proud Martin Boyle! The hundreds of hours you spend in the car every weekend to cheer yourself up in sun, wind, rain and snow; you sit next to me in the stands and watch; the surgeries and rehabilitations..it’s all been worth it to get to this moment. See you in Qatar,” Rachel Boyle captioned a photo of an airplane emoji.
The video covered Australia’s disappointing history of World Cup qualifiers, highlighting how far the country has come since the Socceroos spent 32 years in the wilds of the tournament between 1974 and 2006.
Jimmy Rooney, Harry Williams and Jimmy Mackay all laughed in 1974 as Australia prepared for their first-ever World Cup. It would be another 32 years before the Socceroos could qualify again
“Do you remember the first steps that were fatally taken 100 years ago on the Dunedin field (Australia’s first-ever football game, against New Zealand in 1922) or those who first showed us it was possible in 1974,” he said. Dirani in the video.
How have 100 years of glory and heartbreak made us who we are? Because what does football teach us, but the fact that anything can happen.
“Maybe in those moments (where the team did not qualify for the World Cup) we found our resistance,” said Dirani.
The actor also explained how special it was to have a national side that is finally representative of the proud, multicultural nation.
Players like Thomas Deng, a South Sudanese refugee who fled the war-torn country as a child, and Garang Kuol, another refugee from the African country whose family worked multiple jobs to fulfill his football dreams.
And the warriors like Andrew Redmayne and Aaron Mooy who were eternally underestimated until their talents were finally appreciated.
Whether in Adelaide or Aberdeen, Sydney or Zagreb, those first steps were taken from fleeing war to finding a home Down Under, to leaving home at 14 to chase your dreams. he said.
“Being told we’re not good enough, or long enough; too weak or too physical and now be a squad that reflects the face of a country like no other.
“Through the streamers and arrows of 1,000 angry tweets and headlines, our boys have found a way (to qualify for the World Cup),” Dirani said.
Andrew Redmayne (left) and Aziz Behich (right) celebrate after qualifying for the 2022 World Cup after Redmayne’s save in a penalty shootout against Peru
It’s also a brilliant point. While Socceroos’ chances of making it past the group stage are slim at best, qualifying seemed almost impossible when all hope seemed lost.
The heartbreaking victory over Peru in June was ended when a goalkeeper almost completely unknown to foreign football fans, Andrew Redmayne, stopped Alex Valera’s punctual kick in the now iconic penalty shoot-out.
Most Australian fans won’t expect much from the Socceroos in terms of results, but if they give 100 percent, as Dirani pointed out in the hype video, the whole country will undoubtedly still be proud.