New Subway Socceroos Assistant Coach Hayden Foxe has enjoyed a long career in football both on home soil and abroad.
The former Socceroo has played in top divisions in Europe, Asia and in the A-League and, since retiring, has been a very successful coach.
Foxe's journey in football has always been closely intertwined with that of Socceroos Head Coach Tony Popovic, having played with him for both club and country, and facing off on numerous occasions in English football.
That was all before joining his coaching staff at Western Sydney Wanderers and Perth Glory.
Foxe’s working relationship with Popovic has proven to be a successful one and that trusted connection now continues with the Australia Men's National Team.
Establishing himself as a player
A young talent in Sydney, Foxe began his career at Blacktown City before being picked up on a youth contract by Dutch footballing giants Ajax.
The young central defender spent two seasons in Amsterdam learning off some of the best to ever play the game.
Patrick Kluivert, Edwin van der Sar, Frank de Boer, Edgar Davids and Marc Overmars were just some of the stars he would train with – and Louis van Gaal was the manager at the time. Foxe never made it on to the pitch for Ajax’s first team but learned a lot in his time there as a youth player.
After a short stint playing for Arminia Bielefeld in the German Bundesliga across 1997-98, he moved to Japan to meet up with some familiar faces.
Signing for Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 1998, Foxe joined fellow Aussies Aurelio Vidmar, Graham Arnold and, fittingly, Tony Popovic.
Back to Europe
Foxe impressed in Hiroshima and garnered attention back in Europe, this time in England. In 2000, he was signed by West Ham United in the Premier League and loaned to Belgian side KV Mechelen to get more game time under his belt.
On his return to England after the loan spell, Foxe made 12 appearances in the English top division. From there, his performances earned him a £400,000 transfer to Portsmouth, who were then managed by Harry Redknapp, in May 2002.
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In the 2002-03 season, Foxe starred at the centre of defence for Pompey in the Championship and helped the club win the division and earn promotion back to the Premier League.
In that very season, Popovic and Foxe would cross paths once again when they were on opposing sides in the Championship. In fact, both defenders found themselves on the scoresheet for their respective clubs in a Portsmouth 3-2 win away against Crystal Palace on August 17, 2002.
Following a serious foot injury, Foxe had a short spell at Leeds United in 2006-07 who were then in the Championship, but at the end of that season, he would return home.
A return down under
Returning to Australia, Foxe signed for Perth Glory in the A-League in 2007 and spent the next two seasons there.
Due to injury, the centre-back missed a lot of football and managed eight appearances for Glory before moving to Sydney FC.
In 2010-11, Foxe enjoyed a strong season with the Sky Blues and his presence and experience was noted as a pivotal part in the team’s title win that season, playing 25 games in the process.
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Socceroos playing days
Foxe represented Australia 11 times between 1998 and 2003, with his debut coming in November 1998 in a friendly against the USA – fittingly, he was paired up in defence with none other than Popovic.
Cap #441 was handed to Foxe that day, and he went on to be part of the World Cup Qualifying campaign in 2001, in which he scored twice – one each against Fiji and Samoa.
In May 2001, Foxe was named in the Confederation Cup squad, along with Popovic, and played against Mexico and South Korea. That tournament, the Socceroos won the third-place playoff over a star-studded Brazil squad.
Foxe also represented his country at the 1996 Summer Olympics and 2000 Summer Olympics, enjoying a solid career in the green and gold.
A move into coaching
After hanging up his boots, Foxe turned his hand to coaching, starting out as a youth coach at Melbourne Heart.
That soon progressed into an assistant coach role at the same club, before he was hired by Popovic to join him at Western Sydney Wanderers, where the duo would guide the Wanderers to the A-League Grand Final in 2015-16.
Foxe followed Popa to Perth Glory as well in 2018 and, under their stewardship, Glory won the A-League Premiership in 2018/19.
Most recently, Foxe has been the assistant coach at Western United, where he has been pivotal in developing young talent, working with head coach John Aloisi. Foxe enjoyed a memorable three years as Western United, where he helped guide the club to the best season in their history, winning the A-League Championship in 2022.
And now, here we are. On 30 September 2024, Hayden Foxe was appointed Subway Socceroos Assistant Coach, along with fellow former Socceroo Paul Okon, in Head Coach Tony Popovic’s new set-up.
