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Sydney FC players and interim coach Tony Popovic will finally get to meet the mystery man – their new coach Vitezslav Lavicka – in China for Saturday’s friendly with Shanghai Shenhua.
And all parties are looking forward to a “fresh start” under the former Czech coach of the year, who will officially become Sydney FC’s fifth manager when he arrives in Australia next month.
Lavicka will travel to China to meet with the players, staff and watch Saturday’s match against Shanghai.
And despite it only being a friendly, Sydney FC players have plenty to play for in making a good first impression on their new boss, whom little is known about except for an impressive coaching CV.
“At the end of a season it’s never easy to get the players up for it but to their credit they’ve trained really well and they’re looking forward to it,” said Popovic, who has taken the helm since John Kosmina was sacked last month.
“There’s a new manager, everyone is looking to make a good impression and it’s always nice to play an international match.
“It’s a new manager, new ownership and a lot of changes at the club and it’s a fresh start for all the players.”
Popovic will remain at the club next season as one of Lavicka’s assistants but said he did not feel pressure to impress the new boss.
Instead he was excited about the next chapter of his coaching career, which has taken off rapidly since his retirement for playing midway through this A-League season.
“Four months ago I was expecting to still be playing at the end of the season,” Popovic said.
“But I’d be lying if I said I don’t want to do this (coaching).
“I’ve been thinking about this for a few years now.
“It’s all a part of the process I’ll learn a lot in these three weeks and hopefully I’ll learn a lot from the new manager.
“I’ll enjoy the match and enjoy meeting up with the new boss and seeing what he expects and how I can help him throughout the year.”
Sydney took a blend of youth and experience to China with a squad including John Aloisi, Simon Colosimo, Steve Corica, Alex Brosque but do have injury concerns over Adam Casey and Terry McFlynn.
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