‘I wasn’t expecting it’: Zlatan’s surprise phone call to rising Socceroos star

When Lucas Herrington missed the penalty that spelled the end of Australia’s World Cup dream in Dallas, he received a very public show of support from Zlatan Ibrahimovic , who told him live on the US Fox Sports network to keep his head up.

“You stepping up there, you show a lot of courage. Not everybody will do that,” Ibrahimovic said, as debate raged around the world over whether Herrington, 18, was too raw to take a penalty in the Socceroos’ round of 32 clash against Egypt .

“My friend, you’re the best. Don’t listen to the rest. Herrington, if you want to reach out, I’m here.”

In an interview with former Socceroos legend Mark Schwarzer for Stan Sport, the 18-year-old revealed that Ibrahimovic actually reached out to him, out of the blue, as he prepared for his big-money transfer to newly promoted Premier League side Hull City.

“Zlatan did call me. He called me a couple weeks ago ... I wasn’t expecting it,” Herrington said.

“He asked how I was first, and I said, ‘Yeah, I’m good. How are you?’ He just said, ‘How are things going post-World Cup?’ and I told him … ‘I’m moving to Hull.’

“He said ‘Oh, great. It’s a great move, great opportunity,’ and he said he was proud of me and just to keep my head up.

“It was obviously a tough moment, but he said he’s had plenty of moments like that in his career, and just to keep going, keep working hard and make sure you have another one of those moments, and just be ready.”

With Ibrahimovic’s advice ringing in his ears, Herrington is making plans for when that next moment comes around.

It could have happened this week, when he made his starting debut for the Tigers in their Carabao Cup tie against Stoke City. When scores are level after 90 minutes in that tournament, there is no extra time; it goes straight to penalties, and so Herrington prepared accordingly in the lead-up.

Herrington was one of the best players on the pitch, getting more touches (108) and making more defensive contributions (nine) than anyone else - but the match finished 1-1, and in the end, he wasn’t needed in the shootout, which Hull won 5-4 to progress to the next round. But he got some reps in anyway.

“Obviously in the cup competition, we knew it could go to penalties, so the day before, I was practising … I stuck to my routine, kept it the same and I scored a couple, which was nice to see the back of the net ripple. I’ll be ready for the next one.”

As assured as he’s looked on the pitch, Herrington is still pinching himself at the fact that he has landed in the Premier League, just seven months after his last appearance for Brisbane Roar in the A-League.

His debut off the bench in Hull’s shock 2-0 win over Manchester United capped off a lifelong ambition, one he has ticked off earlier than he imagined.