The Socceroos will try to emulate the efforts of their golden generation when they go up against England's best in London on Saturday morning.

Twenty years ago, a Socceroos team headed by Harry Kewell and Mark Viduka caused an upset at Upton Park that was viewed as one of those occasional humiliations to be buried in the hall of shame, down the corridor from England's unthinkable loss to the USA in the 1950 World Cup.

The Socceroos last played England in 2016, losing 2-1 at Sunderland's Stadium of Light.

But that 2003 take-down of a team that included David Beckham, Michael Owen, Frank Lampard, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole and a debutant Wayne Rooney provides a delicious backdrop to the Socceroos' first Wembley visit.

And what ammunition it provides for Graham Arnold, the coach who was an assistant to boss Frank Farina on that celebrated night in February 2003 and now has the chance to repeat the dose, but on an even grander stage.

"One hundred per cent," said Arnold, when asked if he would tap into Anglo-Aussie rivalry and tales of 2003.

Fuelled with indignation, Farina's boys were to hear of then-coach Sven Goran-Eriksson's pre-match announcement that he would completely change his team at half-time.

"'Who the hell does he think he is? Does he think we're shit?' We grew the narrative as coaches, 'Look, they have no respect for us,'" Arnold told The Times this week.

"The Aussie mentality kicked in."

And England was left in disarray.

"We walked up the tunnel and all you could hear was Beckham going to Sven, 'We're not f***ing coming off. We can't be down to 2-0 at half-time and come off.' Sven still changed the whole team," Arnold said.

For a bunch of football-mad kids back home, waking up to go to school and learning of the result — England 1, Australia 3 — lit a fuse.

Jackson Irvine, then 10 years old, recalls it like it was yesterday.