Aussie fans – As Australia’s World Cup build-up accelerates toward their clash with the USA, Tony Meola’s CBS comments branding the 2006 Socceroos “older” and not “at the highest level” have sparked a furious backlash from Australian fans.
A month out from Australia’s World Cup second group game against the USA, the buzz in the build-up is being fueled by something other than tactics.
On CBS’ World Cup preview, former USA star Tony Meola took aim at the Socceroos’ famed 2006 “golden generation” and suggested they weren’t at the highest level.
Meola said: “Like the Tim Cahill days. it was an older group.” He added. “I don’t want to say journeyman. guys that have been around the world and played but maybe not at the highest level like Tim Cahill.” In his view. “It certainly feels like Meola may have missed the mark” wasn’t the phrasing Australians used—but the reaction landed the same way: his assessment didn’t sit right with the people who still carry the 2006 campaign in their football memory.
Australia’s 2006 squad is remembered for names that still resonate across generations of fans—Harry Kewell. Mark Viduka and Tim Cahill. Kewell was a Champions League winner with Liverpool. Viduka had long established himself as a Premier League striker (even in the twilight of his career). and Cahill was in the second year of his Everton stint while still playing as a midfielder and scoring six goals.
The numbers and the level were part of the argument before the season even begins, too. By the time the 2006 World Cup arrived, Viduka had scored 72 Premier League goals. Kewell was fresh from elite European success. And Australia’s tournament run itself gave the group a lasting weight.
They made it out of the group in 2006 after a 3-1 win over Japan and a 2-2 draw with Croatia, either side of a 2-0 loss against Brazil.
Then came the heartbreak. In the round of 16, Francesco Totti converted a 95th-minute penalty to eliminate the Socceroos.
Given all that, the idea that the team was “older” and not operating at “the highest level” lit a match online.
One user on X wrote: “Watched CBS’s preview of Australia and Tony Meola labelled our ’06 Golden Generation ‘filled with journeymen & guys who weren’t at the highest level.’ A reminder the team had players playing for Liverpool. Everton. Blackburn. Newcastle and Middlesbrough. Parma and PSV at the time.”.
Another post pushed the comparison further: “Harry Kewell alone is more talented than any player the US has ever produced, what is this rubbish? Viduka would also be their greatest striker of all time.”
Others pointed to how regular European football was for those players at the time. “Ridiculous. That team was full of Premier League and Serie A regulars,” one user wrote, before adding, “Even Chipperfield was playing European football year in and year out with Basel.”
Even Meola’s own playing legacy became part of the debate, with one comment calling it “laughable” that he had managed to achieve 100 caps for the United States, given his club career.
In a month, Australia will get its chance to answer the argument on the pitch—starting with the USA in their second group game—when the conversation about “level” stops being about analysis and starts being about results.
MISRYOUM Sports News Australia Socceroos Tony Meola CBS World Cup 2026 USA vs Australia 2006 golden generation Harry Kewell Mark Viduka Tim Cahill Francesco Totti
Tony Meola needs to chill, it was 2006 not his grading exam lol.
Wait so he said they were “older” and then everyone freaked out? I mean it’s like sports commentary, it’s not that deep. Also Cahill is literally Tim Cahill so what did they expect.
This is why I don’t trust American commentators on international teams. He probably just watched highlights and decided to roast them. Like Viduka and Kewell were still legit, so yeah he missed the mark. USA fans always act like they invented soccer too.
I’m confused though—if Meola is from the US, why is he even talking about the 2006 golden generation like he’s a historian? Sounds like he was trying to hype the USA game but accidentally insulted Australia. Also “older group” like… aren’t all soccer players older once you get to World Cup years? People need to relax.