As he bids to end Western Sydney's six-year A-League Men finals drought, Wanderers goalkeeper Lawrence Thomas believes he is in the form of his life and wants to push through into the Socceroos set-up.
Thomas has proved a vital acquisition for Wanderers boss Marko Rudan, who lured the keeper back to Australia after a stint with Danish outfit Sonderjyske.
Rudan has often cooled talk of his players winning a national call-up but said after last month's derby win that Thomas was the best goalkeeper in the league and deserved to be in Graham Arnold's Australia squad.
The stats back up the coach's argument.
Thomas tops the ALM for clean sheets (nine in 23 games), with the Wanderers having conceded a league-low 23 goals.
The 30-year-old keeper appreciated Rudan's praise and hopes to continue his solid form against former club Melbourne Victory on Saturday.
"I honestly think (Rudan) is speaking off the back of my performances and I don't think he's just saying it because I'm his player," Thomas, who won a solitary Australia cap in 2021, told AAP.
"I feel I've had my best A-League season by far.
"I've been really solid and I've not made many mistakes and a lot of big saves to get us points.
"I personally believe that I've had the performances to be in that (Socceroos) squad.
"But that doesn't really change anything for me, I want to keep going about my business."
Part of that business is ending the Wanderers' long-standing finals drought, which could be over with a win against bottom-placed Victory.
At one stage, the Wanderers were firmly in the mix for a top-two finish but taking their foot off the gas has cost them in recent weeks.
"It's all on us, because if we can come out with the right intensity, I don't think they can match us," Thomas said of Saturday's clash at CommBank Stadium.
"It's down to our attitude really.
"When I was at Victory you have that aura where you feel nobody can touch you before a game.
"We're trying to build that here and we have the quality to do that."
