Former Central Coast goalkeeper Danny Vukovic says he’s been left devastated with his life in limbo after having his new contract with Turkish club Konyaspor terminated.
But the 25-year-old is determined to find another club quickly and has vowed not to let the experience sour his dream of playing overseas.
Vukovic has returned to Australia after being shown the door by Konyaspor just six weeks after leaving the Mariners to sign a three-year contract.
Vukovic said he had been training hard for his new club when he was told he was no longer wanted because Konyaspor decided it should allocate a foreign player space for an outfield player and not a goalkeeper.
“It was pretty devastating because I was over there by myself, no family, no friends, working my arse off and definitely it wasn’t deserved,” Vukovic told AAP.
“I can understand where the coach is coming from … but at the end of the day I had already signed a contract, so it wasn’t really my problem.”
Vukovic said the Turkish club claimed they had not processed his transfer through the Turkish football federation, so it was not valid.
But he has since been assured by FIFA there was a breach of contract and will lodge a dispute through the governing body in the hope of obtaining compensation.
But he said in the meantime, his life had been “left in the lurch”.
“My girlfriend was here selling all our furniture, she quit her job and she was coming to be with me in September after she finished her uni exams,” Vukovic said.
“So I’ve got to come back here now, I don’t have any furniture and don’t have a club.
“I told the club that `you can’t do this to me, I’ve dropped everything to come be here and sign the contract’ but they said it’s not our problem, basically.
“It’s pretty harsh but what can you do.”
Vukovic said he and his manager would be working hard to secure a new contract in the coming weeks, but acknowledged it would be difficult now that many domestic and overseas teams had finalised their squads.
He said the Mariners, who signed Jess Vanstrattan as his replacement, could not fit him back under the salary cap while he was unsure about reported interest from Wellington Phoenix.
“I would look at any sort of offer that comes in at the moment because I need to start playing and I need an income,” Vukovic said.
“I haven’t had a wage for the last two months and now that my girlfriend’s quit her job, the money will run out soon.
“We’ve got bills, we’ve got a mortgage, so it’s time to start getting paid again.
“But I’m still left without a club and that’s the most important thing for me, not the money.”
Vukovic said he had been touched by the support he had received from his friends, family, former club and Professional Footballers Australia.
And he said while the incident was a lesson learned, he still hoped to ply his trade in Europe in the future.
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