HE has represented Australia on over 50 occasions now, including during the last World Cup in Russia, so playing in the Qatar 2022 finals later this month will not be daunting for Aaron Mooy.
Yet, the Celtic midfielder is optimistic that he will be better placed to perform this time around than he was four years ago having been involved in the Champions League for the first time in his career this season.
The Scottish champions might have been unable to win one of their six Group F matches and may well have finished bottom of their section and failed to progress to the Europa League preliminary knockout round let alone the last 16.
However, Mooy believes that featuring in the encounters with RB Leipzig, Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk in the past couple of months has given him invaluable experience of facing world class footballers in a competitive environment.
He has found himself up against the likes of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni, Christopher Nkunku, Andre Silva and Timo Werner – who are all expected to star in Qatar with Croatia, France, Germany, Portugal and Uruguay – in recent weeks.
Tchouameni and Nkunku could well be in the opposing side when the Socceroos play their opening Group D match against the defending champions in the Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah a fortnight today.
“I haven’t played Champions League before,” said Mooy. “I have played in the Premier League and I have played against top nations at international level. It is similar.
“But Real Madrid are one of the biggest clubs in the world. It was tough playing against them. It was a learning curve obviously. They are a top team with top players. They were very clinical when they got their chances. They controlled the game so well.
“The Champions League is the best competition in club football so I am sure it will help me when it comes to playing in the World Cup.”
Croatia captain Modric was the recipient of the Golden Ball award that is given to the outstanding player after every World Cup four years ago even though his national team were beaten 4-2 in the final in Moscow by France.
Mooy squared up to the “Cruyff of the Balkans” at both Parkhead back in September and the Bernabeu last week and could understand why he is still the outstanding player in his position, possibly in any position, on the planet at the grand old age of 37.
“I had never come against Modric before,” he said. “He is a fantastic player. I have been watching him for years. He is still doing it now after so many years. He is a unique player. He is so comfortable under pressure, he sees the moment to speed the game up or to penetrate with a pass. It is the level we all aim to be at.”
The 31-year-old also feels that being at Celtic in the 2022/23 campaign has made him stronger because of the pressure which there is on him and his team mates to prevail in every game they play in domestically.
He is sure that having to perform at his very best and win on a weekly basis – something that was not expected of him when he was at St Mirren, Western Sydney Wanderers, Melbourne City Huddersfield Town or Brighton - will stand him in good stead when he travels to the Middle East with Australia later this month.
“It is a demanding club,” he said. “The supporters expect good play and wins in every game . It is a good place to be to improve and to be ready. I am just enjoying the experience, just soaking it all in, trying to play as much as I can.”
Mooy’s manager Ange Postecoglou certainly asks a lot of Celtic at home and abroad – the Greek-Australian wants his charges to triumph playing a style of football that entertains their fans regardless of what competition they are involved in or who they are competing with.
Many pundits have suggested that he should adopt a far more defensive gameplan when his team are up against the cream of the continent in the Champions League – but his countryman disagrees with the critics.
The 53-times capped enforcer argued that the displays against Real, Leipzig and Shakhtar showed that “Angeball” can work in Europe’s premier club competition. He is determined to help his side reclaim the Scottish title and return next term so they can prove it.
“It is obviously a lot better to be creating chances than not,” he said. “That is what you want to be doing in every game. You look at the Real score and it looks like we got a proper doing. But I still think we have done well by taking the game to them and creating chances.
“That is how the manager thinks we are going to improve the most - by going at teams no matter what. I get the feeling that he wants us to win games at this level. That is what we are all going to strive for in the future.
“Hopefully we are back in the Champions League next season and can do that. That is his target – to be in the competition every year. That means doing well domestically and getting better results in the Champions League.
“Playing Champions League this season has just whetted my appetite for more. There are levels in the game that you can push to reach. There is always time to improve. That is what we can take out of it.”
