Neill, 33, clubless after recently severing ties with Turkish side Galatasaray, is in a race against time to fully recover from minor groin surgery that he had last month.

Although Osieck said Neill remains a chance of coming off the bench, he is likely to use his six permitted substitutions on giving younger players an audition for a full-time role, rather than handing his captain a cameo off the bench - particularly with Tuesday's match against Serbia right around the corner.

"I'm looking for the players who can step up and be regular members of the Socceroos. There's a great incentive for everybody," Osieck said.

"I'm not too sure whether it will be the right moment for (Neill) tomorrow - at least to start, it won't be the right moment.

"Lucas had some groin injuries and he is having excellent rehabilitation. He is training with the team and he looks OK. But I'm not really sure if I will start him."

Despite the question marks over Neill, Osieck promised Adelaide fans were likely to see some big names - with Blackburn midfielder Brett Emerton expected to be handed the captain's armband in Neill's absence.

"Everybody will get good playing time (in the two friendlies). But the public asks for the more popular players. It's up to me to find the right balance," Osieck said.

Most of the spots in Osieck's XI for Sunday's match are up for grabs, with only winger-cum-left fullback Michael Zullo a certain starter.

The former Brisbane Roar flyer has impressed Osieck enough to suggest that he is a potential permanent solution to Australia's continued problems on the left side of defence.

"I'm looking for somebody to play in this position," he said.

"Michael made some good progress - I saw him play in Holland with his team and after I left, I saw a couple of games on Australian TV.

"He looked OK so I thought 'give him a chance to start tomorrow' ... (especially) considering the fact that Dave Carney will not be available for a number of months due to his shoulder surgery."

The three-way battle for the goalkeeping post has been whittled down to two, with Reading shot-stopper Adam Federici to be given a rest on Sunday - meaning either Nathan Coe or Mitch Langerak will start in goals.

Osieck said sentiment and emotion will not guarantee that Adelaide-born attacker James Troisi, who plays his club football for Kayserispor in Turkey, will get a start in his hometown for what will be just his fourth cap.

But he did hint that the 22-year-old is likely to see substantial gametime.

"Football is, in a way, an emotional game - but when it comes to things like that, you have to approach it a bit more professionally," Osieck said.

"I can tell you that I have a good impression of him and he did well (at training). He looks sharp. Whether he starts tomorrow or not remains to be seen.

"But I'm pretty sure that he will get playing time. I don't want to get him too excited - he needs a good night's sleep and then early enough tomorrow he will get to know what's up."