The Roar
The Roar

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Brisbane Roar are the real deal

22nd August, 2010
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22nd August, 2010
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Brisbane skipper Matt McKayBrisbane Roar have always played attacking football, so it was no surprise to see Ange Postecoglu’s side turn in a vibrant performance on Saturday night. What was surprising was the ease with which they dominated champions Sydney FC, suggesting that Brisbane could be a real force in this season’s title race.

I was looking forward to running the rule over Nicky Carle on a crisp Brisbane evening at Suncorp Stadium, but instead it was Roar skipper Matt McKay who caught the eye with a typically tenacious display.

McKay was everywhere for the Roar, winning possession in midfield, creating space for his team-mates and showing a cool head in front of goal to score the game’s only goal.

Brisbane thought they should have scored even earlier after a deflected McKay cross forced Sydney goalkeeper Liam Reddy to scramble back, but from my position inside the ground it didn’t look as though the ball had crossed the goal line.

It didn’t matter in the end, as the Roar dominated a Sydney side who clearly missed injured duo Mark Bridge and Alex Brosque.

Salary cap issues aside, one wonders why Sydney coach Vitezslav Lavicka was so willing to see the back of John Aloisi and Chris Payne without signing adequate replacements, as Sydney’s depth was well and truly tested by the absence of Bridge and ex-Brisbane man Brosque.

The centre of Sydney’s defence also posed some interesting questions, with Hayden Foxe consistently exposed by the pacy Brisbane attack.

How much longer Lavicka persists with playing Foxe alongside the similarly single-speed Stephan Keller remains to be seen, given that in Sebastian Ryall the Sky Blues possess a perfectly capable centre back, while right-sided defender Shannon Cole currently twiddles his thumbs on the bench.

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The lack of pace in Sydney’s back four was constantly exploited by the Roar on Saturday night, while German import Thomas Broich showed some clever touches on the ball.

Broich will probably take some time to settle in the A-League, and like Sydney playmaker Carle, he at times appears to be thinking two or three moves ahead of his team-mates.

The much-travelled German is not the only new signing to have impressed in a Brisbane jersey so far, and Postecoglu appears to have been vindicated by his decision to purge the club of several of their underperforming veterans last season.

If Costa Rican striker Jean Carlos Solorzano can make the sort of impact Roar officials are hoping for, then surely finals football awaits the club from the Queensland capital.

Solorzano isn’t quite match fit, and nor is Reinaldo if his brief nine-minute cameo is anything to go by.

The burly Brazilian has always been fairly adept at holding the ball up, but consistent goal scoring isn’t exactly his forté, and the Roar could do with the type of player capable of banging home 10 goals a season for them.

They had that in Sergio van Dijk, so Solorzano has some big shoes to fill when the young Costa Rican finally makes it onto the pitch.

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For now, Postecoglu will be pleased with the way his team is faring, as the Roar continue their fine tradition of playing expansive, rapid-fire passing football.

They’re one of the most attractive teams to watch in the A-League, and at the very least Roar fans deserve to be entertained following the club’s well documented problems on and off the pitch last season.

If the much-maligned Postecoglu can uncover a regular goal scorer, then Brisbane Roar will be a definite force to be reckoned with during the 2010-11 A-League campaign.

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