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Sydney FC should avoid signing a high-profile marquee

28th July, 2014
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Alessandro Del Piero and the A-League All Stars put up a strong showing against Juventus. (AFP PHOTO / Greg WOOD)
Expert
28th July, 2014
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Graham Arnold’s revolution at Sydney FC is almost ready to begin. The A-League winning coach has cut free the deadwood, made some impressive signings and pre-season is well underway.

There’s just the small matter of a second marquee signing.

After Frank Farina was dumped following poor results and fan unrest, Arnold was parachuted in to bring Sydney back to the top of Australian football.

Marquee signings have come and gone at the foundation club, some having a positive influence both on and off the field, while others have failed to light up the city.

With Alessandro Del Piero’s departure, does Sydney FC need to bring in another high-profile foreign marquee? Or do they need to focus on their playing squad, and give fans a genuine feeling of satisfaction that their club is moving forward?

Big signings are great for both management and fans at first glance. They boost sponsorship opportunities, put bums on seats and create an air of excitement and glamour unrivalled in Australian sport.

Yet are they conducive to creating a winning team?

If we look at the history of the A-League, teams that have signed high-profile stars have often been found wanting come the end of the season.

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Sydney FC found instant success following Dwight Yorke’s arrival in the inaugural A-League season. But since then they have failed to build on the buzz following further high-profile acquisitions.

When Brazilian maestro Juninho arrived in 2007-08, Sydney finished third but were knocked out in the semis. John Aloisi was the big arrival in 2008-09, but Sydney failed to make the finals, finishing fifth.

They managed to win the competition the following year, but that was with a largely unchanged squad.

In 2010-11 Nicky Carle returned to the A-League, yet Sydney had their worst season with a ninth-spot finish. Socceroos legend Brett Emerton’s arrival the year after didn’t improve fortunes, with the club sneaking into the finals following a win over the Newcastle Jets on the last match day.

After that it was Del Piero’s turn, and while the Italian maestro did a lot for the A-League, he failed to bring success to Sydney.

So is it possible that big-name signings can actually be a detriment to the overall performance of a club? A-League sides have rarely won a premiership following the arrival of celebrity-style players.

There have been marquees who have pushed their team to victory, namely Fred for Melbourne Victory and Thomas Broich for Brisbane Roar. But they weren’t the star names that got the press in a frenzy and resulted in immediate fan hysteria. Marcos Flores, Besart Berisha and Carlos Hernandez can be placed in the same category.

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Shinji Ono is probably the one player to go close to what Dwight Yorke achieved – off-field excitement and on-field success – but his Western Sydney Wanderers side fell at the last hurdle in 2012-13.

Stars signings such as Harry Kewell, Robbie Fowler, Jason Culina and Emile Heskey also failed to spur their respective sides on to glory, and let’s not talk about William Gallas.

Of course there is more to a marquee signing than just on-field success. It’s about growing the game, growing the club and bringing in memberships. But Sydney FC have for too long searched for those star names to both fly the A-League flag and bring in sponsorship dollars.

It’s time they concerned themselves with mounting a serious premiership challenge, and if they want to compete for silverware they should steer clear of that path.

Graham Arnold wasn’t accustomed to bringing in star men at the Central Coast Mariners, where he was contained by a tight budget. It would be interesting to see how he would deal with a celebrity player. Would he be pleased with having to ensure that player was in the team week-in week-out, regardless of team and individual performances? If he signs a relatively unknown, yet quality player then he has the freedom to get on with his job.

Sydney are reportedly close to securing current Austrian international Marc Janko. Arnold has admitted that talks have been held with other candidates, such as Shola Ameobi, Bobby Zamora, Louis Saha, Guillaume Hoarau and Eduardo.

Based on the first three alternatives, who are household names due to their EPL experience, Sydney would be better taking a chance on Janko.

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As a Newcastle fan, it’s clear the A-League should keep clear of Ameobi, however much of a cult figure he is within the Toon Army. Meanwhile Zamora and Saha have had their injury woes, and are nearing the ends of their careers. Hoarau is an unknown quantity, but his scoring record doesn’t impress, while Eduardo (if Arnold was speaking of Eduardo da Silva) would be one to rival Janko, but he signed with Flamengo earlier this month.

Janko, at 31, has scored 17 goals in 40 appearances for his country, the latest coming against Uruguay in a 1-1 draw in March. He has also been a consistent goal scorer for previous clubs Red Bull Salzburg and FC Twente, and in a brief stint with Porto.

The six foot five inch striker is strong in the air and a poacher in the box. His addition to the Sydney squad would provide a perfect alternative to the current strikeforce of Shane Smeltz, Alex Brosque – Sydney’s Australian marquee – and Bernie Ibini.

Memberships have already been snapped up by supporters at a solid pace too, showing that Del Piero’s departure will not be too keenly felt on that front, and that there is no burning need to draw in fans.

Janko could be the right pick, and won’t bring a media circus with him. Sydney will just have to wait and see if he is willing to accept terms and play in the A-League.

One other player who would fit the mould is ex-1860 München forward Benny Lauth, who was linked to Brisbane earlier in the year, but doesn’t seem to be on Sydney’s radar.

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Bling FC is a term that is becoming a less common description for Sydney, and that’s how it should be. Arnold has brought in enough talent to excite fans, with a mix of pace, power, experience and youth being injected into the side.

The A-League needs a strong Sydney FC, and they have fallen woefully behind the top brass in recent years. Arnold has to bring success to the foundation club, but he should be allowed to work without the extra burden of a high-profile star hogging the limelight.

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