Aloisi is not a Socceroo, he is just flavour of the month

 
Davidde Corran Columnist

By , 16 Feb 2010 Davidde Corran is a Roar Expert

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More than a year since The Cove booed John Aloisi for missing two glaring chances against Perth Glory, the marquee man sealed Sydney FC’s first A-League premiership with the second goal in Sunday’s 2-0 defeat of Melbourne.

It’s a remarkable change in fortune for a man who never really did anything wrong other then accept an over-priced contract.

That said, I nearly fell off my chair when I saw the amount of “John Aloisi for the Socceroos” talk that has flooded the football media over the last few days.

Seriously, are our memories so myopic that we’ll now consider a player who has spent most of the last 18 months struggling to secure even a starting position for Sydney?

There’s no question that Aloisi is the consummate professional. He wasn’t the most talented footballer, but he has wrung out every last drop of his ability to make the best of his career.

Still, despite some great moments, Aloisi has never been the Socceroos’ key man and since “that penalty” many seem to have had their memory of his European career warped.

As the only Australian to have played in La Liga, Serie A and the English Premier League, Aloisi was a decent player during his time in Europe. I even come across someone in Italy every now and then who remembers him as a “good player”.

Still, Aloisi was a journeyman and now he is a 34-year-old footballer who hasn’t played in Europe for three years.

On Sunday, Aloisi didn’t turn back the clock. He scored a good goal. Maybe even a great goal, but that is all.

I met a close friend of his at a Socceroos camp last year that revealed that Aloisi was planning on making a late charge for the national team. You’ve got to admire this guy’s self-belief.

But what would Aloisi offer the Socceroos? Experience?

We have enough of that right across the park. If he’s not good enough to remain as Sydney FC’s marquee next season, then how is he the right man to help the Socceroos at the World Cup?

Craig Foster, a good friend and former team-mate of Aloisi, tellingly said on The World Game recently that if Sydney FC had Van Dijk this season, they would have won the league at a canter on.

Instead, the Sky Blues had Aloisi.

Still, even if South Africa seems a long shot, the Asian Cup qualifier with Indonesia is a much more conceivable target but, I believe, that’s a problem in itself.

For me, the Aloisi debate is an example of our “flavour of the month” approach to Socceroos selections when our first choice ‘Euroroos’ aren’t available.

If Lucas Neill and company can’t make the long haul flight across to Asia, our second-tier options seem to be whoever has played the best over the last month or two. The thing is, anyone can have a good run of form, but it is long-term consistency that is a sign of genuine quality.

So what ends up happening is the players who have been in recent form get called in and then fail to impress in the green and gold. Many of them don’t make the next A-League based Socceroos squad and the cycle continues.

Shannon Cole, anyone?

The one time a different approach was taken, the mostly Olyroos based squad that played against China at ANZ Stadium in 2008, those players and their selection policy were quickly jettisoned.

In the end, there has been lots of inconsistency, both in performances and squad selections, and no legacy from our A-League Socceroos squads.

Italy has an almost identical debate every time the Azzurri play but the outcome is completely different.

While the Italian sports press salivates over its latest in-form darling, the national team coach resists and selects a more consistent player.

A recent example of this is Sampdoria’s Antonio Cassano. While fans made protests at national team games and newspapers printed front-page headlines demanding his inclusion, coach Marcello Lippi continued to ignore Cassano’s good form earlier this season.

Now the former Real Madrid player isn’t even making the bench of a Sampdoria team that hasn’t stopped winning since he was dropped. We could learn a thing or two from this.

The Socceroos need a more considered and systematic approach to Socceroos selection than simply getting in who has the highest fantasy football form rating.

FFA must introduce a technical advisory committee that reviews these selection decisions and makes sure the mistakes of the past aren’t repeated like they are now.

John Aloisi might run out for the Socceroos on March 3rd and help Australia get the result it needs to secure a place in Qatar next January. But that won’t always work.

It certainly hasn’t in the past.

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