Captain's knocks, new faces and match-winning braces: The A-League players who were the difference in Round 19
Round 19 was an interesting weekend of football with no draws, 19 goals in six matches, two five-goal games on Sunday and for the…
A little over four weeks from today, the A-League returns when Sydney FC take on the Newcastle Jets at Allianz Stadium.
After a season to forget for the two time A-League champions, they’ll be looking to embark on a new chapter that is all about playing good football and winning matches – something that we weren’t accustomed to last season.
Frank Farina has had time to settle and the club has had a proper pre-season, playing fixtures in Sydney, Japan and Italy – fixtures which would do them the world of good.
Frank and his CEO, Tony Pignata, have also done good work in removing the deadwood. They’ve replaced them with experienced players, and the best bit of business is getting the super Nicky Carle back where he belongs.
The Transfer Ins: Matty Jurman, Nicky Carle, Pedj Bojic, Tiago, Marc Warren, Corey Gameiro, Yairo Yau (now a permanent signing), Richard Garcia
All signings are exactly what we needed with good depth in the defenders, a robust midfielder in Nicky, and some power up front. These signings excite me for the season ahead.
The Transfer Outs: Fabio, Nathan Sherlock, Adam Griffiths, Paul Reid, Jarrod Kyle, Trent McClenahan, Kruno Lovrek, Joel Griffiths, Lucas Neil
Bye-bye deadwood and performance shockers. Just a shame we never got rid of Ivan the terrible.
The squad for this season has massive potential, with a good mixture of youth, experience and stars. The Likes of Vedran, Halgi, Powell, Malia and Chianese all have another season under their belt, and will be looking to make amends.
I’m glad the Antonis deal to Parma never went through. I like him as a footballer – he has skill, potential and, when fit and given a consistent run, this boy will come good.
The problem with Sydney FC last season besides injuries, lack of depth, lack of pre-season/fitness, shambolic dealings with the manager and board… well, let’s just say we had a helluva lot not going our way.
This season already we’re slowly ticking off last season’s failings. Hopefully this will equate to a positive and successful season that will see Sydney FC finish in the top four on the table.