The triumph in January was nice while it lasted, but now the serious business of trying to qualify for the fourth World Cup in a row is at hand.

No-one's position in the team can be taken for granted, and everyone involved has to continue to prove himself every time the squad comes together, the big central defender says.

"Everyone is hungry. Everyone still has a point to prove. Every time you come in you really have to bring your best and Ange (coach Ange Postecoglou) does his best to keep that competitive environment, which is vital. Everyone will be training to the best of their ability and wanting to be in that first eleven come Thursday," the China based centre half said on Monday as the first members of Postecoglou's squad assembled in Perth ahead of the game later this week against Bangladesh.

Spiranovic has had a good 18 months in national team colours. He was a first choice player during the World Cup and at the Asian Cup. He had earlier rejuvenated his career after a move to the Middle East by returning to Western Sydney Wanderers in the A League, whom he helped to that historic Asian Champions League success.

But earlier this year the Geelong born defender made the move back to Asia, this time to China.

(As a youngster he had played overseas, first in Germany with Nuremburg, then in Japan with Urawa Red Diamonds of the J-League).

Having now played a handful of games for his new club Hangzhou Greentown, whom he has helped pull away from the relegation zone, he is happy with his shift to one of the sport's burgeoning marketplaces. Tim Cahill recently moved to the Chinese SuperLeague as well, although the experience for many Australians who have gone to play there has been short lived and unhappy.

"The opportunity that came up ticked all the right boxes. I had another year on my contract at the Wanderers and I was very happy there and it was going to take a good offer to get me elsewhere.The offer came in from Gungzhou and it just felt right.

"Tobe playing regular football now I feel like I am in a good place, fit and well, and so far its been good."

For one still relatively young he has been around the block a few times and endured a couple of false starts in a career that never seemed to take off in the way that it had promised when he burst on to the scene as a teenager.

"You take the experience that you have gained over the years playing in different countries. I am now 27 and been a professional footballer for quite a while. You just draw upon all those experiences and that holds you in good stead whenever you face any challenges," he says stoically.

"I spent a good four years in Germany. We had a lot of success in the initial years, we won the German Cup, I was fortunate enough to play in the UEFA Cup. I was learning, you could say I was serving my apprenticeship there at the time.

"I moved on to Japan where I was able to play regular football, and that was massive for my development. The rest is history."

While there are many prepared to pot the Chinese Super League, Spiranovic says that it is generally of a high standard.

"I think China is a good level. It can be unpredictable, world class one minute and then you see things you might not see in a top flight European league, but the players they are bringing in and the money they are spending, its no surprise that it can be of a very high standard. I am coming up against those players week in and week out, I still feel like I am still being tested and playing every week."

Spiranovic says the key to success in different countries is having an open mind and accepting the challenge.

"I definitely want to see it (his contract) out. My past experience has helped me. You have to embrace the culture as much as you can. It has its challenges, that's nothing that I didn't expect going over there. For me its a fresh start, something new. As a foreigner playing in a league like China there's a lot of expectation, that's what I am enjoying.

"When I arrived they were facing a difficult situation with relegation, but we have been able to string a few wins together. Already I feel its been a good start."