The Socceroos rallied around Harry Souttar and 18-year-old Lucas Herrington after their missed penalties in Australia’s World Cup shootout loss to Egypt, which ended 1-1 after 120 minutes. Mahmoud Saber, Ramy Rabia, Mohamed Salah and Hossam Abdelmaguid converted for Egypt to complete the win and end Australia’s run at the tournament.
Swedish great Zlatan Ibrahimović, working as a postgame pundit for Fox Sports in the United States, publicly reached out to Herrington, praising the teenager’s courage for stepping up to take a spot kick and offering support should the player want to make contact.
The order of takers had been set by Socceroos staff at the end of extra time. Herrington was fourth to shoot and struck the crossbar before Abdelmaguid converted the decisive spot kick. Herrington said he had practiced his penalties during the week, felt confident and accepted the miss as part of the game, adding that hearing support from a legend meant a great deal.
Jackson Irvine was among the first players to embrace Herrington on the pitch. Irvine, who converted his own penalty, commended the youngster’s bravery and said the team wanted to make sure Herrington knew they were behind him, calling the display an example of putting the team first.
Souttar, who took Australia’s first penalty and sent it over the bar, was described as one of Australia’s best players across their four matches. He acknowledged the responsibility that comes with taking the first kick, said he was devastated at missing, but also praised Herrington’s performance in the tournament and expressed confidence that the young defender would grow stronger from the experience. The result also prompted discussion about Tony Popovic’s late decision to replace goalkeeper Patrick Beach with Mathew Ryan for the shootout.
