Adelaide United’s 2013 Golden Boots winner last donned the green and gold in a friendly against Serbia at the MCG in June 2011.

Since then a string of injuries hampered his selection chances and saw him slip off the national team radar.

But a stellar season with the Reds and a call up to a camp for Australian-based players earlier this month has put the 26-year-old’s Socceroos aspirations back on track.

Vidosic was among the first of Holger Osieck’s squad to arrive in Japan ahead of three World Cup-defining matches and he says he’s keen to make up for lost time.

“It’s unbelievable to be back in,” Vidosic said.

“I’ve had a little bit maybe misfortune with a few little injuries …and now it was good to get a good season under my belt for Adelaide and also throughout the Champions League.”

He added: “(I’m) really looking forward to the challenge and to talk again to the guys.

"You can learn a lot on the field and you can learn just as much off the field as well, if you talk to some of the older guys about their experiences.

“You come in as a sponge and just try to soak up as much as you can. I’m just really looking forward to it and hopefully at the end Australia can book its place at the World Cup.”

With the rest of the squad expected to arrive in Saitama over the next few days, Vidosic was among a small band of players who trained for the first time at the Urawa Komaba Stadium yesterday.

The Socceroos are currently sitting third in Group B and need positive results from their remaining three matches against Japan (4 June – Saitama), Jordan (11 June – Melbourne) and Iraq (18 June – Sydney) to secure a top two place and guarantee automatic qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

And Vidosic, who was in the 2010 World Cup squad under former head coach Pim Verbeek, says no one is taking the task lightly.

“Everyone’s eager for the qualifiers,” he said.

“We know there’s a lot at stake so we’re eager to get out on the pitch and definitely start the preparation in the right way and put in a good performance in the first game and hopefully build from that and at the end qualify for the World Cup.

“It’s going to be a great occasion – we all know the Japanese fans are very loud, very vocal and again we’re playing against a world class team. Everything’s at stake for a trip to Brazil.”

Vidosic is expecting another blockbuster match when Asia’s two football powerhouses clash.

“They’re very good players technically, very good on the ball,” he said of the runaway group leaders, Japan.

“They like to keep the ball on the deck and play very quick football but we’ve got a lot of great players ourselves so it’s got all the makings of a terrific game.”

The international rivalry between the Socceroos and Blue Samurai is now one that spills over into club football, and on that front the Reds’ star says the Aussies have notched up some impressive wins over their J.League opponents, beating the likes of Gamba Osaka and Nagoya Grampus.

“It’s great to play against these teams especially in the (Asian) Champions League,” he said. “There’s lots at stake and this is just another level now on top against the Japanese national team.