Socceroos’ World Cup hopes crushed by star’s horror injury

The Socceroos’ hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup have been dealt a major blow with the loss of key defender Harry Souttar for up to a year.

Scans have revealed that Souttar ruptured his Achilles tendon while playing for English Championship club Sheffield United on Friday morning (AEDT) in a 2-0 home loss to Burnley.

“Unfortunately that’s me out for a while but I wish everyone at the club all the best for the rest of the season and beyond,” Souttar posted on Instagram following confirmation of his injury.

Souttar, 26, had been on loan to the Blades from English Premier League club Leicester City.

He has returned to Leicester, where he will undergo his injury rehabilitation, which is expected to take between nine and 12 months.

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder told BBC Radio Sheffield that Souttar had been “amazing” for the Blades.

“He’s been outstanding and is a great personality to work with, a great character,” Wilder said.

“I’m devastated for him. He loved it here and he’s absolutely gutted.”

Souttar had also previously suffered a long-term injury when he was sidelined from November 2021 to October 2022 after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee playing for the Socceroos against Saudi Arabia in Sydney.

His latest injury is the second significant defensive blow for the Socceroos, who also lost the services of Parma centre-back Alessandro Circati for up to a year in late September with his own ACL injury.

Australia’s next match on the qualifying road to the 2026 World Cup is on March 20 against Indonesia in Sydney.

The Socceroos then travel to China for a match on March 25 before completing the third round of Asian Football Confederation World Cup qualifiers with matches in June against Japan and Saudi Arabia.