In September 2019, Australia commenced the qualification process for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Australia started in the second round of AFC qualification which doubles as the second round of qualifiers for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup. The draw for the second round was held on 17 July 2019 at AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Australia were placed in pot 1 and were drawn against Jordan, Kuwait, Chinese Taipei and Nepal. Australia started the qualification process with a 3–0 away win over Kuwait, with stand-in skipper Mathew Leckie scoring a brace and Mooy scoring the third goal. A month later, in their first home match of the qualification process, Australia beat Nepal 5–0, with Maclaren scoring a hat-trick and Scottish-born debutant Harry Souttar scoring a brace. 5 days later, Australia travelled to Taiwan and beat Chinese Taipei 7–1, with Adam Taggart, and Jackson Irvine scoring braces while Souttar and Maclaren scored their fourth international goals in a week.
