To see the Socceroos train on Wednesday...
    

Grella, 30, was a key part of the Australia squad which reached the Round of 16 four years ago in Germany and will have a similar role in South Africa.

The Melbourne-born midfielder, currently with Blackburn Rovers, is aware the nation's hopes are high for the Socceroos on the back of their success in 2006.

"The expectation from our public is very high," Grella told the Lancashire Telegraph. "They are talking about us progressing past the first round as though it is going to be a little bit of a training run.

"It is very hard to get the point across that football is not that easy. It is going to be important for us to be courageous in this World Cup and I think we have shown we have got that."

He added: "Some nations with a lesser name can sometimes surprise you more. It is looking like being a great World Cup.

"When you make a World Cup, there is no easy group. The teams we have drawn are tough, every one of them has their own little story in the World Cup. I think we will have to be at our very, very best to be in the next round."

Grella believes the fact the current Australia side is very similar to the one which did so well in Germany four years ago is a positive.

"To be deadly honest, the team is basically the same as it was then and we will use that experience to our benefit," he said.

"We've got basically the same starting XI as before. We have some good young players but they still have to really show their full potential, so maybe this is a great opportunity for them to do that.

"There's fors and againsts keeping the same squad. Modern football requires a lot of energy and a lot of fresh legs.

"But I think a lot of our players are peaking around the 30-years-old mark, so we are going to have a strong team.

"It'll be important to see how many of the players are actually fit for the World Cup. Because, like myself, a few players have had niggles that have followed them through the season and maybe not played as many football games as they would have liked to.

"Maybe on the positive, they might have that freshness to be at their best for the World Cup."

Grella added about 2006: "It was a new experience because we'd never been there before. There was a lot of excitement and enthusiasm and it was a great experience.

"We got through a very tough group and we got knocked out by the eventual world champions so for us it was a great World Cup and one that won't be easy to repeat.

"If you are going to lose to someone, lose to the world champions and probably your favourite team.

"I was proud of the way we played that game, I was proud to be in a team that showed so much courage.

"That was what summed us up a little bit. I don't think we were technically fantastic, we had good players, but we had courageous players.

"That is probably the biggest thing I'll be looking for in this next World Cup."

To see the Socceroos train on Wednesday...