Australia savour goal glut before World Cup but squad depth questions remain

Australia's friendly wins over Cameroon and Curacao were a boost before they head overseas to continue their World Cup buildup but the matches also left nagging questions about the Socceroos' squad depth.

Australia wrapped up the FIFA Series with a welcome glut of goals in a 5-1 rout of Curacao in Melbourne on Tuesday, which followed a lacklustre 1-0 win over Cameroon in Sydney last week.

Coach Tony Popovic gave debuts to forward Deni Juric and teen defender Lucas Herrington against Cameroon while trying new combinations up and down the field in both the home fixtures.

Popovic declared it "mission accomplished" after getting wins and a good look at new players but the experiments largely fell flat against the lower-ranked teams.

The Socceroos struggled with their much-changed lineups in both matches and relied on first-choice players coming off the bench to turn the tide in their favour.

Herrington was praised for a composed debut in the stodgy win over Cameroon but the 18-year-old's lack of experience showed during the first half against Curacao.

Juric had a shaky debut against Cameroon and he may not have done enough against Curacao to convince Popovic he is worth a place in the World Cup squad.

While he helped create Awer Mabil's opening goal with a back-heel that caught a deflection off a defender, Juric spurned the chance to score it himself from close range when set up by Kai Trewin's cross.

When he came off after the hour-mark with the match at 1-1, his replacement Nestory Irankunda helped spark Australia's revival, lifting his teammates with his energy and pace before scoring two late goals.

Among the fringe players pushing for a place in the squad, Trewin had a more encouraging night in his fourth Socceroos appearance, adapting well at right back despite playing as a central defender for his new club New York City FC.

"He did a good job," said Popovic, whose right back stocks have thinned with injuries to Lewis Miller and Fran Karacic.

"It's not the first time I've thought about putting him there. It's just circumstances ... He's a versatile player."

BOS TAKES OVER

Australia were a different team when Popovic injected Irankunda, Jordy Bos and Riley McGree as part a four-player substitution which ignited a four-goal burst in 17 minutes.

Attacking left back Bos, who scored the only goal of the Cameroon match, underlined his growing stature with another against Curacao and was behind most of the hosts' threatening moves.

The Netherlands-based 23-year-old battled a succession of hamstring injuries in recent years and is still managing his body, Popovic said.

"So that's a part he needs to improve, that he get the body stronger and adapts to the rigors of playing two games a week at a big club like Feyenoord," he said.

Australia have a final warmup against Mexico on May 30 before they kick off their World Cup against Turkey on June 13 followed by matches against co-hosts United States and Paraguay.

Popovic will hope for more reinforcements from players recovering from injury as he looks to whittle down an extended squad to 26 for the World Cup.

Defender Harry Souttar has not played a minute for English club Leicester this season due to a long-term Achilles injury while striker Mohamed Toure is recovering from a groin problem after scoring five goals in five matches with new club Norwich City.

Germany-based midfielder Jackson Irvine has been managing a recurring foot injury while playing for St Pauli.

Midfielder Ajdin Hrustic came off with an apparent hamstring strain at the end of the first half against Curacao but did not think it was serious, Popovic said.

(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)