The Socceroos are headed to Qatar in November. This is their sixth appearance in the tournament and they challenge defending champions France in their first Group D matchup. Taking on a more significant role in his third World Cup is the team’s starting goalkeeper. Let’s check out Australia’s team captain in this Nitrobetting 2022 FIFA World Cup Player Spotlight: Mathew Ryan.

2022 FIFA World Cup Player Spotlight: Mathew Ryan

More like the @championsleague nights I had dreamed of. Great team effort to get our first clean sheet and point of the campaign. Atmosphere as always was ????. Onto Sundays big one ???????? pic.twitter.com/Z8n4qPo31Z

— Maty Ryan (@MatyRyan) September 15, 2022

An underdog story

It took a while before Ryan’s career took off. The Aussie received his long-awaited chance at a professional career during the 2012-11 A-League season. This happened when first-choice goalkeeper for the Central Coast Mariners, Jess Vanstrattan, was recovering from an injury. He was given a shot to prove himself as the goalkeeper and did not disappoint. It was only a matter of time until he became the club’s starting keeper following a sequence of impressive performances.

Mathew won several trophies before taking expertise to the next level. He received two Player of the Year titles. More than that, the Plumpton native earned him a spot in Australia’s national squad.

Rising to the occasion

Not all situations were in favor of Ryan in 2021. But, he made sure to make the most of the five games since departing Brighton and Hove Albion. Ryan was a common sight in the English Premier League for three-straight seasons. He joined Real Sociedad in 2021 and appeared in three games. Shortly after, the 30-year-old brought his talents to the Bundesliga for the first time and plays for Copenhagen.

Ryan is not the tallest of goalkeepers. He’s relatively short at six-foot flat compared to his competition in the Premier League. However, he turned this perception around by working on other areas where he can excel. With a tough group in the 2022 World Cup as +1,900 underdogs to win Group D, it’s interesting to see how he fares with some of Europe’s best.

Keeping up with modern goalkeeping standards

The goalkeeper has a never stop and don’t look back attitude. Ryan is short for modern goalkeeper standards like David de Gea and Alisson Becker. Nevertheless, he has power and speed on his side. He even had a season for Brighton where he faced more shots than any other Premier League goalkeeper–560 to be exact. That’s 15 shots per game and one every six minutes. By the end of the season, he only let 54 goals in, which says a lot about his ability to protect the goal.

Ultimately, he reads the game well and is an aggressive type of goalkeeper. He has good positioning and takes chances when it matters most. Moreover, Ryan commands the backline well and has that added offensive game when he clears the ball and plays balls off touches.

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