Melbourne Victory is proud to confirm that Jordi Valadon, Joshua Rawlins and Jing Reec have been named in the Australian U23 National Team for the AFC U23 Asian Cup™ Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers.
A 24 -player squad has been confirmed to compete in Group D alongside China PR (host), Northern Mariana Islands and Timor-Leste in Xi’an, China PR during the 1-9 September FIFA window.
Subway Australian U-23s Head Coach, Tony Vidmar said the named squad is a mix of Isuzu UTE A-League Men’s talent along with a few players who currently represent clubs overseas.
“The selected players represent the view the team and I have had, in the lead up to this competition, that we wanted to work with new and existing talent across a range of leagues and clubs to build greater depth across the squad,” Vidmar said.
“This is a great tournament to be a part of and will provide an excellent experience for the group. I’m excited by the group we have named today, and I am looking forward to seeing them perform on the pitch.” Vidmar concluded.
With the trio having a positive impact on Victory’s run through to the 2025 A-League Grand Final, Director of Football John Didulica said the selection was a testament to their continued excellence in 2025.
“Jordi, Josh and Jing made tremendous contributions to the Club both on and off the pitch during 2025 and their ongoing selection for national team duty is a well deserved reward for their efforts,” Didulica said.
“We are proud of the emerging talent here at Victory and Jordi is a great example of that, having been awarded the club’s top honour of the 2025 Victory Medal, and I have no doubt that the trio will continue to aspire for full international honours in the future.”
Qualifiers for the 7th edition of the AFC U23 Asian Cup™ – to be held in Saudi Arabia – will feature 44 teams, who will be divided into 11 groups.
Each group within qualifying will be contested in a centralised league format, with teams seeded into pots based on a points system derived from their final rankings across the previous three editions of the Finals, which saw the Subway Australian U-23s drawn from Pot 1.
The squad will need to finish as one of the 11 Group winners or the four best second-placed teams to advance to the Finals.
MATCH DETAILS:
Australia v Northern Mariana Islands
Date: Wednesday, 3 September 2025
Kick-off: 3:30pm (local time) / 5.30pm AEST
Location: Xi’an Sports Training Centre, Xi’an, China PR
Australia v Timor-Leste
Date: Saturday, 6 September 2025
Kick-off: 3:30pm (local time) / 5.30pm AEST
Location: Xi’an Sports Training Centre, Xi’an, China PR
Australia v China PR
Date: Tuesday, 9 September 2025
Kick-off: 7:35pm (local time) / 9:35pm AEST
Location: Xi’an International Football Centre, Xi’an, China PR
