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Western Sydney Wanderers striker Brendon Santalab is set to make the trip to Saudi Arabia for the second leg of the Asian Champions leg final after being cleared of a serious shoulder problem.
Santalab dislocated his shoulder in Saturday night’s 1-0 win over Al-Hilal at Parramatta Stadium and after being replaced in the second half left the ground with his arm in a sling.
However, scans have cleared Santalab of further damage and the 32-year-old is set to be available for coach Tony Popovic after training with teammates at Blacktown on Monday.
The Wanderers have declared the historic ACL final against Asian heavyweights Al-Hilal as the biggest game in the club’s history, and Santalab’s desperation to play through injury is a sign of how much the title means to the playing group.
“You have to go through pain,” Santalab told AAP.
“You have to be prepared to feel the worst and be up for the battle.
“This is the biggest game of my life.”
Last week Santalab took the pitch despite damaging his hamstring just seven days earlier against Sydney FC.
Captain Nikolai Topor-Stanley said Santalab’s courageous efforts had inspired teammates.
“He’s certainly very strong mentally and physically, that’s what we want from him,” he said.
“We hope he’ll be alright for the weekend.”
A couple of hundred Wanderers fans turned up to watch the team’s session in scorching conditions in Sydney’s west on Monday, good preparation for the temperatures they’ll be confronted with in the Saudi capital.
The focused Wanderers endured an extended video session on Monday morning which delayed them to training by an hour.
They were given a guard of honour by the fans who turned out at Blacktown International Sportspark, before going through a light run.
Popovic is likely to stick with the formula which proved successful in the first leg, and keep Santalab in the starting side with Tomi Juric coming off the bench.
However, Juric’s match-turning performance on Saturday and Santalab’s fitness issues with shoulder and hamstring may provide food for thought for the coach.
“We bounce so well off each other. Last year we had quite a good partnership going,” said Santalab.
The Wanderers fly out for Riyadh on Tuesday evening and are expecting to receive a hostile reception when they run out in front of 65,000 screaming Al-Hilal fans on match day.
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