‘He looks fake, like a wax statue’ - St Mirren & Australia star Keanu Baccus on facing Lionel Messi and World Cup experience

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson is worried that he could lose World Cup star Keanu Baccus in the January transfer window as speculation over his future heightened.

The 24-year-old midfielder, who joined the Buddies from Western Sydney Wanderers on a two-year-deal in the summer, has made 15 appearances for the Paisley club, scoring two goals. He was rewarded for his excellent form by securing a place in Australia’s 26-man World Cup squad and featured in all three group stage matches against France, Tunisia and Denmark.

Baccus, who made history for the club by becoming the first player to ever play at a World Cup, then started the last-16 tie against Argentina and was pictured alongside Lionel Messi after his country’s 2-1 defeat which ended their impressive run in the tournament.

Socceroos assistant manager Rene Meulensteen tipped Baccus to earn a move to one of Scotland’s biggest clubs - Celtic or Rangers - or leagues in England, France or Spain after impressing at the Qatar finals.

He stated: “Keanu has a lot of great attributes to his game, which is why he got the opportunities he did in Qatar, and he made the most of every situation there. I could see him go to France, Spain or the English Championship too and fit in there because he has such boundless energy to go with his technique.”

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano claims Baccus will have options to leave Saints next year. He tweeted: “Australian midfielder Keanu Baccus has chances to leave St. Mirren in 2023 as English and more clubs are keeping an eye on him. #transfers. Baccus, attracting interest after his good performances at the World Cup.”

St Mirren boss Robinson admits he’s already prepared for the possibility of interest in Baccus and claims he’s unlikely to be given funds to bring in new signings next month.

He stated: “As a club like St Mirren you’re always open to clubs loking at your so-called better players. You’re always at the mercy of teams with more money. We’ve got some very good players. We only changed 30 per cent of the squad in the summer and all the boys we’ve brought in have attracted attention.

“We’ve got a boy playing at a World Cup who is doing everyone proud, so our recruitment has been good. We need to do more of that, but it probably won’’t be in the January window, it will be more towards the summer. Other clubs will strengthen, but we believe we’ve put a good squad together and hopefully I can keep that whole squad together.

“The financial constraints at the club probably dictate that at this moment in time. We’ve got a couple of more experienced boys who might not have had the game time they wanted, so we may have to look at that to balance the books. But unless things change or a lot of people leave the club, we’ll probably remain as we are, which we’re happy with.”

Baccus himself insists he is in no rush to leave St Mirren and reckons his introduction to the physicality of Scottish football made him “ready” to compete for a starting berth at the World Cup.

He admitted: “I definitely have career aspirations. I have loved every minute at the club and I’m still here. I will take it game by game and see where it takes me. That’s what I was doing before so I should probably keep doing that and not worry about the future.

“I will do my best for St Mirren first - everything happened off the back of that so I will continue that. I grew up in a family that’s very humble and they like to stay humble. Going to the World Cup made me want more. If anything it made me even hungrier to push and do well for the club. I want to be back playing games and playing every minute that I can.

“The last few months in Scotland have really made me ready for moments like that. I felt like I was ready and I felt like I’ve worked really hard for that moment. I didn’t feel any nerves. I worked hard and did what I could. I did my best.”

Messi coolly slotted home the opening goal against the Aussie’s as Argentina progressed to the quarter-finals and Baccus states he was honoured to share the pitch with the former Barcelona icon, regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. He even managed to grab a coveted selfie with seven-time Ballon d’Or winner after the game.

He added: “It’s surreal how good he actually is and how he watches the game, sees the game and takes it on himself. It’s very special because not many people can do that. Receive the ball from anywhere on the field and back yourself, be confident to go at people and take the game on. I was trying to watch over my shoulder just to see where he was and what he was doing all the time.

“A special player to watch. He looks fake on the field, he looks a bit like a wax statue, to be honest. But it was amazing to play against him and I was trying to learn but it’s also hard when your in the thick of it.”

St Mirren are preparing for a return to Scottish Premiership action against Motherwell later this month.