Hibs winger Martin Boyle 'could face Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez next summer'

Hibs' Martin Boyle could come up against the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez next summer after Australia were confirmed as a guest nation in the 2020 CONMEBOL Copa America.

Martin Boyle scored twice and registered an assist in a 3-0 win over Lebanon on his first start for Australia

Boyle, who has been capped three times by the Socceroos, suffered a season-ending injury while on international duty at the turn of the year and hasn't kicked a ball for club or country since.

However, the former Dundee winger is nearing a return to fitness and, all being well, will feature for Hibs next season and could be included in Graham Arnold's squad for the 47th edition of the quadrennial tournament, due to be hosted in Argentina and Colombia.

Boyle qualifies for the Oceanic nation through his father, who was born in Sydney.

The Australia head coach welcomed the historic news, adding: "The Copa America is a highlight of the football calendar and we can't wait to get there.

"We crave these opportunities as players and coaches. The experience we will gain from playing in this tournament will be incredible and I know by speaking to our players, they are equally excited about being part of one of the world’s most prestigious football tournaments.

“Our planning for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar has already started. We are building depth amongst our playing group, as evidenced by our performance in Korea Republic last week and playing in this tournament provides another layer of incentive for our players to put themselves up for selection for the national team.

“It will be a big couple of months as we start June next year with World Cup qualifiers and then head straight to the Copa America.”

2022 World Cup hosts Qatar have been named as the second invited nation for the 2020 Copa America while teams including Jamaica, the USA and Honduras have all accepted invitations in the past.

Chris Nikou, chairman of the Football Federation of Australia, said: “We are ecstatic that our Caltex Socceroos will be participating in this prestigious competition for the first time in our history.

“We have been working hard over the last six months to improve our international relationships. This week we held fruitful final discussions with our colleagues at CONMEBOL in Paris and we are delighted we have been able to accept this invitation.”

Australia will be placed in a six-team group alongside Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela in the North Zone, or Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay in the South Zone.

The tournament runs from June 12 until July 12 next summer.