Socceroos defender Alessandro Circati is ready for a repeat of the physical battle that characterised their last meeting against USA when Australia take on the World Cup co-hosts in Seattle.

Eight months on from the two sides’ bruising and occasionally volatile friendly in Denver, the Socceroos and Americans will meet again — except this time, top spot in Group D and a potentially easier round of 32 match-up is at stake.

Amid a backdrop of condescending commentary from US pundits, the hype around the match has been steadily building since the two sides were drawn in the same World Cup group in December.

While American midfielder Sebastian Berhalter said the US “did not take s...” ahead of the Australia clash, Circati was less blunt.

“We’re just out there to play a game of football to win and do our best, and it doesn’t matter what he said,” he said.

Circati was one of six Australians who started both the upset win over Turkey and last October’s 2-1 defeat to USA, which was a chippy affair.

It prompted Crystal Palace’s American defender Chris Richards to exclaim post-game that the Socceroos were “lucky it was a friendly”.

“I was ready to go. And if (the ref) didn’t give me a s*** yellow in the corner, I probably would’ve killed somebody,” Richards said at the time.

The US were annoyed by what they perceived to be an overly physical approach, and Circati said he was expecting Friday’s match (Saturday 3am WST) to have a similar feel.

“We’re a very big team, very physical team, even players who maybe you look at, and they’re not the biggest players, they’re very physical,” he said.

“People go into challenges giving 100 per cent, and if anything, I wouldn’t see it any less physical than the last game, because there’s big stakes on the line.”

Circati said the defence was braced for the pace of the USA, particularly in transition.

“They’re very quick. They like to exploit spaces when the spaces are left. Also on the counter, they’re very explosive, very quick, and we’ve got to be wary of that, be smart, and really manage the moments of the game,” he said.

Australia had a full 26-man squad on the training track in Oakland on Tuesday, while US star Christian Pulisic — a friend of Circati’s — trained separately from the main group at his team’s base outside Los Angeles after picking up a calf issue in their 4-1 win over Paraguay.

Perth-raised centre-back Circati’s form for Parma and the Socceroos has apparently not gone unnoticed, with the defender linked with both Atletico Madrid and Newcastle United in recent days.

Nestory Irankunda and Lucas Herrington have also attracted transfer interest recently, and Circati said while the group could not allow themselves to be distracted, it was a sign people were starting to take Australian football more seriously.

“At the end of the day, it does give you motivation, a better feeling within yourself, that what you’re doing is somewhat correct,” he said.

“But we’ve got to leave that out and really focus on what’s at hand, and then we’ll worry about that after the World Cup, and I’ll pass that message onto the two younger boys who maybe haven’t witnessed something like that, haven’t lived it.

“The most important thing is to focus on today and tomorrow, and after the World Cup, then you can sit down with whoever you sit down and decide.

“I hope we’re starting to gain a little bit more respect. I don’t want to be the underdogs for the rest of my life. That will come with time, and I’m sure many boys will go to great clubs, and once that happens, it will become reality.”