AAP - It's a no-brainer to give Daniel Arzani a Socceroos cap before the teen revelation is snapped up by Iran, players union chief John Didulica says.
Arzani's mesmerising A-League rise with Melbourne City has made him the subject of an international tug of war before the World Cup.
The 19-year-old admitted last week he had "no idea" if he wanted to represent Australia or Iran, prompting calls for new Socceroos coach Bert van Marwijk to select him for Russia 2018 and give him a senior competitive cap.
Professional Footballers Australia chief executive Didulica agrees, saying it's in Australia's best interests to act "strategically" on "a remarkable talent" he believes is the country's best product since Mark Viduka.
"If it means bringing them into a squad, giving them some minutes to lock them in, I'm all for that," Didulica told Football Nation Radio.
"Part of the narrative of football is seeing our future young stars ... we want to see what the future of Australian football looks like.
"Capping somebody who's young and may not necessarily be one the best 22 players the nation has at any given time isn't a slight or an indictment on the game. It's actually quite intelligent and shrewd.
"Both in terms of broadening your talent pool but also giving the fans a strong narrative that they can build their hopes and dreams around.
"For me it's a no-brainer."
Arzani's breakout January has already reportedly piqued the interest of Iran coach Carlos Queiroz.
It has also spurred Football Federation Australia into action, and head of national teams Luke Casserly is set to make an approach after telling AAP it would be "disappointing" if Arzani defected after going through the AIS system and representing Australia at youth level.
Didulica, whose brother Joey came through Australia's youth ranks before playing for Croatia, stressed Arzani had a right to represent whichever country he liked.
He said it was FFA's challenge to make overtures rather than "strong-arm players into playing for Australia".
"I'm a big advocate of trying to court young players who might have a second nationality, making sure they feel loved and welcome and really want to pull on the green and gold," he said.
"I'm very optimistic he's going to be a long-term contributor to Australian football ... I don't see any reason he can't become a leading footballer at the global level."