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The Socceroos midfielder Aiden O’Neill walked purposefully on to the podium for Australia’s final pre-tournament press conference in Vancouver with clear eyes, declaring he has been sleeping nine and a half hours a night in the lead-up to his side’s daunting World Cup opener against Turkey.

“They’ve been checking out the pillows, the sheets, everything, so every detail has been gone over,” he said of Australia’s preparation. “Yeah, I think we’re all ready.”

Next to him, the eyes of coach Tony Popovic were tinted red, evidence of the effort he and his coaching staff have invested in recent weeks, as the Socceroos tune up for a tilt at this tournament.

“Not quite that,” he said, when asked to compare his sleep tally to O’Neill’s. “But enough. Definitely enough.”

For Popovic, it may be difficult to sleep knowing what lies ahead. Australia’s first opponents Turkey boast a squad of seasoned professionals and two of the world’s hottest young attacking talents.

Though they have not reached a World Cup in 24 years, they are ranked higher than the Socceroos and are clear favourites ahead of the Saturday evening clash in Vancouver, the first fixture of the tournament in a city that – far more than the San Francisco Bay Area where Australia are based – has come alive for the World Cup.

Turkey’s supposed superiority became a key theme of the match eve. Captain Hakan Calhanoglu described his side as “more talented” than Australia in an afternoon press conference, and predicted his side would “dominate” the game.

Coach Vincenzo Montella was more diplomatic in his evening media engagement, declining to expand on the words of his captain, and instead praising the Socceroos. “Australia is actually a team that has a very strong mentally, they’re very resilient and they know what to do on the pitch,” he said. “It is a very balanced team, very well disciplined, they are not ashamed to defend to the last 30 metres in a line of five or four.”

By then, however, Popovic had already picked up the slight from Calhanoglu – perceived or actual – and ran with it. “I respect his comment. You ask a question and he has the right to answer it any way he likes,” he said.

“They expect to win, but so do most people expect Turkey to beat Australia tomorrow, so that’s no different. What we can do is try and spoil the party, and that’s our challenge tomorrow, and that’s what we aim to do.”

While Australia has a solid side tinged with promising young talent such as defender Alessandro Circati, fullback Jordy Bos and striker Mo Touré, none have the reputation of Turkey’s brilliant young duo.

Playmaker Arda Güler is already established at Real Madrid at 21. Winger Kenan Yildiz is the same age and has been linked to Arsenal after another fine season at Juventus.

The latter enters the tournament under an injury cloud. Montella declined to address Yildiz’s fitness directly one day out from the match, though he admitted he had “a few doubts” about whether some in the squad could play 100 minutes.

Australia’s main injury concern this week has been around Touré. The 22-year-old missed a training session on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) – even though he was present at the facility for a team photo – before he rejoined the team on the paddock the following day. “He just had a runny nose and just couldn’t train,” Popovic said, without elaborating about a player who is vital to Australia’s chances.

Popovic has adopted a consistent structure in the Socceroos’ two warm-up games, using three central defenders, two wing-backs, two defensive midfielders, two inverted wingers and one striker. The lineup appears largely settled, though questions remain over whether Popovic will choose to hand 18-year-old Lucas Herrington a place in the XI, which would make him Australia’s youngest starter at a World Cup.

The make-up of the front three is also a mystery, given the fitness of Touré, the absence of Middlesbrough player Riley McGree – who was tragically injured in the final match of the Championship in England last month – and the promising form of Nestory Irankunda, the player of the match against Switzerland last week.

Perhaps more important than the formation and selection will be the instructions Popovic gives his players. How high will they press and how long can they sustain it, whether they can win transition moments, and whether the side can show enough composure and invention to ensure possession does not skew the way of Turkey.

Then there is the issue of Australia’s slow starts. Against both Mexico and Switzerland in the warm-up matches, the Socceroos took much of the first half to find their way into each contest. “It’s obviously something we’ve spoken about, improving from the start,” O’Neill said. “I need to take more charge of that in terms of dominating the ball from the get go.”

After the USA’s 4-1 thrashing of Paraguay, the path for the Socceroos through the group appears clear. For Popovic, however, this World Cup is about more than permutations and progression.

“That’s our aim … to be extremely competitive,” he said. “To show that we are a strong nation and that we deserve to be respected.”