'There are some people who want to trip you up': Mark Bosnich's message for 'fearless' Socceroos bolter
Updated . First published at
Mark Bosnich has tipped James Overy to make his first-team debut for Manchester United this season and believes the teenager has the ability to start for the Socceroos at next year's World Cup.
Only hardcore Australian football fans would have known much about Overy before this week but the 18-year-old right back has burst into the headlines after being picked as a bolter in Tony Popovic's squad for internationals against Venezuela and Colombia.
The pacy Perth Glory product impressed Popovic while representing Australia at last month's under-20 World Cup in Chile.
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Manchester United's James Overy at Carrington Training Ground. Manchester United via Getty Imag
Overy, who has also represented Scotland at age-group level, has been training regularly under Ruben Amorim with United's first-team.
He could be following a similar path to trailblazing goalkeeper Bosnich, who joined United as a teenager and became a Premier League champion and Socceroos star.
"He's very highly rated at Manchester United," Bosnich said on Stan Sport's Added Time.
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James Overy of Australia poses during the FIFA U-20 World Cup portrait session. FIFA via Getty Images
"When you're that young, you're fearless. If he really gets the opportunity to prove himself, I think he could make that position his own (as Socceroos right back)."
Bosnich said Overy would need wise support to navigate a highly scrutinised portion of his fledgling career.
"I watched very closely how Alex Ferguson handled Ryan Giggs, and I saw it with myself and Ron Atkinson at Aston Villa. The more you can protect them from the press at a young age, the better it is."
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Bosnich made his first-team debut for United as an 18-year-old against Wimbledon in 1990.
He made his Socceroos debut against Torpedo Moscow in the same year.
"It's everything you've dreamed of, but you've just got to be careful, because there are some people who want to trip you up... one big difference, he's looking to play at the World Cup here," Bosnich said.
Manchester United's James Overy at Carrington Training Ground. Manchester United via Getty Imag
"So this is huge. So this needs protection. 'Popa' knows about that, how to protect them. I'm really excited, there's nothing wrong in getting excited."
Bosnich was asked whether training at a huge club like United was better for development than playing regular senior football at a smaller one.
"There's no better feeling as a young player than when you get called up to train with the first team," he replied.
Mark Bosnich signs for Manchester United. Getty
"It's such a buzz and you're playing with some of the very, very best. So it improves you out of sight. It also gives you that feeling that if I go and play for the Socceroos... you can always fall back on, that's OK because I'm training with Bruno Fernandes, I'm training with (Bryan) Mbeumo, I'm training with (Matthijs) de Ligt, so it can give you that type of security. If I can do it against them, I can do it here...
"From what I've heard, yeah, I really think that he might get the opportunity (with United's first-team)."
United are sitting seventh after 11 Premier League games in the latest international break.
The Socceroos are playing Venezuela in Houston on Saturday (AEDT) and Colombia in New York next Wednesday (AEDT).
Ex-Socceroos captain Craig Foster was thrilled for Overy but raised the question of whether he was at the right club at the right time.
"Is Manchester United actually the best place to be as a young player? I mean, how many young players are they actually going to bring through to the first team?" Foster pondered.
"We want him to obviously be playing first-team football as soon as possible... it's natural for one of the best performers in the under-20 team to be graduating to the Socceroos reasonably quickly.
"Like that to me makes perfect sense. That pathway is extremely important and in fact I would say it should be happening more often. You would prefer that he's already playing first-team football.
"However, hopefully, you'd think that in the next 12 months that's certainly going to happen. If an outstanding performer of the under-20 national team is in the squad and gets some time at the FIFA World Cup, I say absolutely beautiful, that's how your national team's supposed to work."
