AS he watches Argentina take on France in the World Cup final on Sunday evening, Riley McGree will find himself in a unique position. In the last month, he has lined up against both teams and just about survived to tell the story.

McGree is back in the Middlesbrough fold now, preparing for tomorrow’s Championship game against Burnley, but he has spent most of the last six weeks in Qatar representing Australia in the World Cup finals. And, in what proved to be a historic campaign for the Socceroos, he found himself up against both of the sides that will compete for the title of world champions at the weekend.

Australia’s opening game in the group stage ended in a 4-1 defeat to France, but subsequent victories over Tunisia and Denmark saw them qualify from Group D in second position. That set up a second-round game against Argentina, which saw Australia go down 2-1.

Kylian Mbappe scored in the France game, while Lionel Messi opened the scoring in Argentina’s win in the round of 16. Two of the all-time greats, with McGree going toe-to-toe with both.

“It’s a funny one because, on the pitch, I never really saw them for who they were or what they’ve achieved, it was just a case of, ‘I’m up against them’,” said McGree, who started all four of Australia’s games. “It was funny, I watched Argentina against Croatia (in the semi-final), and I thought, ‘It’s crazy to think I actually played against Messi with what he did on the pitch’.

“But on the pitch, for me at least, it’s completely different. It was just coming up against whoever the opponent is, which sounds a bit daft. But when you stop and look back on it, it’s crazy.”

In the wake of Australia’s exit, a number of Socceroos players queued up in the tunnel for a photo with Messi. McGree wasn’t one of them, although he fully understands why some of his team-mates were somewhat star-struck in the presence of a player many feel is the greatest of all time. Not, however, that he was brave enough to ask for a souvenir that will now take pride of place one of his colleagues’ walls.

“I think Cammy Devlin, who plays at Hearts, ended up getting Messi’s shirt in the end,” said McGree, in an interview with BBC Tees. “He just asked him, I don’t think anyone else had the balls to ask him. He asked him and he got it, so fair play.

“I didn’t try to get my picture with him. Personally, it’s not really for me, although I can totally understand why some of the other lads would because it’s Messi and, in my opinion, he is the greatest ever. For some boys growing up and knowing who he is, and wanting to get a photo with him, it’s totally understandable. I was just happy to share the pitch with him and not get exposed by him too much.”

Avoiding embarrassment at the hands of Messi is a notable achievement, but there was so much more for McGree and his fellow Australians to be proud of during a campaign that saw them become only the second Socceroos team in history to qualify for the World Cup knockout stages.

Written off after their heavy defeat to France, Australia bounced back superbly with a narrow win over Tunisia before shocking a Denmark side that made the European Championships semi-finals last summer to reach the last 16.

“It’s a hard one to really put into words,” said McGree. “It’s something I’d visualised for a long time, walking out and singing the national anthem at a World Cup for my country. It’s still sinking in really, and I think it’ll continue to sink for the rest of my career and rest of my life, really knowing what I’ve achieved as a player and representing my family and friends as well. And my nation. It’s still settling and sinking in at the moment.

“As a team and as a collective, we did what we set out to do and went as far as we possibly could have in the end. It was a massive learning experience, and a very proud moment for me.”

Attention now switches back to matters on Teesside, with McGree having slotted back into things seamlessly as he started last weekend’s win over Luton.

The 24-year-old has taken a lot of confidence from his World Cup exploits, as well as learning other lessons he hopes he can help apply within the Middlesbrough camp in the second half of the season.

“I think I’ve learned a lot, on and off the pitch,” he said. “It was my first major tournament, and I’ve learned that if you have a strong collective within the team and the squad then you can achieve things that people maybe don’t expect or things that other teams don’t expect from you as well."