As the Central Coast Mariners marched forward, eight points clear and 12 games undefeated, Sydney FC were left to lament another poor start on Sunday, leading to their third loss on the spin.
With only one win from their six games so far at the Sydney Football Stadium, and even that due to some late fortune against the Gold Coast, it’s fair to argue that Sydney’s poor work in the transfer market over the past few years has come back to bite them in a big way.
But how did it get to this? What becomes patently clear, in assessing Sydney FC since Vitezslav Lavicka came on board two and half seasons ago, is the lack of strategic squad building.
Players have come and gone. Gaps have been left in the squad. Players have been signed for too much or for too long, or, in the case of some of their youngsters, for not long enough, for peanuts, or not at all.
They have been a club without a plan.
Much of this is down to the clear lack of a leader, someone pulling the technical strings.
This is not entirely the fault of Lavicka. Indeed, I often wonder just how much control the quietly-spoken Czech has ever been given in his time in Sydney.
To these eyes there have been far too many chefs in the kitchen, many of them not qualified to cook.
Whereas the likes of Ange Postecoglou and Graham Arnold have been given the reins at Brisbane Roar and the Mariners, making all the decisions around player recruitment, Lavicka often looks to have had his hands tied.
After his first season, a premiership and championship winning one, the word is he wanted to keep Karol Kisel, a key part of Sydney’s forward and defensive transition.
The club, keen to secure Nicky Carle as a replacement for Steve Corica, didn’t act quickly enough on Kisel and he was on his way, only to come back a season later, by then aged 34.
Nothing, it seemed, was smooth.
There were other dramas, surrounding the departure of Clint Bolton, John Aloisi and Simon Colosimo, who were all let go, apparently in the name of a rebuild, only to be replaced by the likes of Liam Reddy, Hayden Foxe and Bruno Cazarine.
The loss of Colosimo and Bolton, in particular, stung the defence, and it wasn’t until Matt Jurman finally got his chance, late last season, that there was some form of “re-building”.
But, no sooner was he in then he was off to the Roar, Sydney again acting too slowly. The club’s inability to retain youngsters had bitten again.
So, 12 months after Colosimo was released, the club had to rebuild the defence again, bringing in 30-somethings in Michael Beauchamp, Pascal Bosschaart and Jamie Coyne.
The signing of Coyne and Beauchamp stunned some close observes who had watched them struggle in recent seasons.
Meanwhile, Scott Jamieson was meant to be a key signing at the start of last season, with Lavicka intent on using him as a wide midfielder, but he struggled there and has only looked slightly more comfortable at left back this season.
Cazarine’s arrival, meanwhile, was the result of an elongated search for a “target man” (at the time I questioned whether that was what Sydney really needed), a search that became a circus, played out in front of the media, at one point delivering trialist Ibrahima Thiam.
When Alex Brosque left for Japan, Cazarine was joined by another “target man” in Juho Makela. From being slick and mobile in attack during their successful season five, Sydney had become stagnant, slow and predicable.
The fact they are taking up two of the club’s current visa spots says a lot.
Another, in Hiro Moriyasu, was knocking about in the local state league, hardly the type of Asian player a club of Sydney’s stature should be signing.
Only Bosschaart, of the imports, has proved his worth this season, and even then his form in recent weeks, since signing a contract extension, has tapered off.
While the loss of Brosque has hurt Sydney like no other, so has the retention of some of the non-performers.
Mark Bridge, for example, has had more chances than most and remains an enigma.
Meanwhile, with the pace and standard of the league lifting in the past two seasons, skipper Terry McFlynn’s game has been exposed as limited to being a ball-winner.
Sydney needs much more out of the holding midfielder role, someone willing to demand the ball and own a game.
Others, like Sebastian Ryall, Rhyan Grant and Shannon Cole continue to play bit-part roles, while the big off season recruit, Brett Emerton, has yet to produce consistently.
Only Carle and Terry Antonis, when fit, and to a lesser extent Bosschaart and Petratos, have been producing close to the level required each week.
Good managers, they say, adapt in all circumstances, but looking at the make-up of the current squad, even Jose Mourinho might struggle to conjure up an effective strategy. There are holes everywhere, including having two second-string goalkeepers.
Of course Lavicka has to shoulder some of the blame. He has been caught short, especially tactically, too often erring on the side of caution.
At the end of the season, if not before, he is likely to be on his way, and while results have been up and down, he should at least be remembered for lifting the professional standard of the competition.
His first preseason, detailed here and here, was trend-setting, his model replicated by most clubs, including Postecoglou last season.
In that sense, one might argue that he’ll leave the club in a better state then when he arrived, but there appears much work to do over the next pre-season.
At the very least, the club appears to be heading in the right direction, with Dirk Melton steadying things off the pitch and Gary Cole brought in to head the football department.
Now comes the most important bit, with the appointment of the next manager and the building of next season’s squad set to decide whether Sydney will move beyond the Lavicka years.
Which Sydney FC players should the club retain next season?
Luke
Guest
Hopefully the appointment of a Football Director will assist the club in getting its youth structure right.
Mato-Bateman
Guest
I'd start with getting a new coach, an Australian coach. Someone with an eye for young talent and balancing it with some good, not over the hill, older players. I would definitely have a look at Melbourne Heart assistant coach Ante Milicic. Having learnt being head coach of Sydney United and then went on to be assistant at Heart, I think his learnt ALOT from working underneath Van Schip and look at all the youngsters shining at Heart at the moment. His ready to step up. Others to look at are former assistant and current Crystal Palace assisant, Tony Popovic. Although would be hard to get him from Crystal Palace at the moment. Others to be considered include Paul Okon, Mark Jones and maybe Robbie Hooker. Okon, the current Olyroos assistant coach, has got his coaching license and might be ready for a step up. Mark Jones has to be one of the reasons Jets did so well in seasons 2 and 3, working under Van Egmond. He already has learnt his trade at the AIS. Sydney shouldn't even think about getting Culina or Farina. He did nothing at Sydney first time and did nothing at Jets in 2 seasons there. Would be a terrible appointment.
The Cattery
Roar Guru
So true. People have to stop deciding things over shortish 4 week periods.
Clayts
Guest
I find it kind of funny that Sydney FC fans are calling for their coach's head when the Sky Blues sit 4th on the ladder. Look what Heart did, won 4 or 5 games and went from last to 2nd (and not far off 1st) in a month! No one saw that streak coming so who's to say Sydney won't do the same? I thought Sydney played some of their best football when they had the ball against Heart as well, just lapses in defence and a potent Heart attack cost them. There would have been plenty of games where the oppositon failed to take their opportunities. Point is, don't despair until you can't mathematically make the finals. The A League is way too congested a competition for that. Once you are there, it's anyone's championship...
Trust Me
Roar Rookie
Maybe Lavicka will become the the former SFC manager from the former Czechoslovakia.
Horza
Guest
Well said Tony, the lack of balance has been a long-running saga. Very rarely has the club had decent options in left midfield and left fullback, or a ball-playing centre midfielder who could screen. The Talay-McFlynn solution produced these qualities at the expense of playing two men in one spot and Musialik ultimately proved to be a pretender, only effective in a team playing well. keep: Cazarine, Carle, Antonis, Emerton, Petratos, Cole, Bosschaart, Ryall, Reddy, Chianese, Grant add: Mallia, Petkovski, Gilgor flick: Makela, Moriyasu, Coyne, Kisel, Bridge, Jamieson, Beauchamp, St. Terence of McFlynn (there, I said it) not all of this will be possible given contracts and the like but that's the direction we should be headed.
Antoine Xats
Roar Rookie
non-existent. they leech off the State League sides and pay them next to nothing for years of training and world-class facilities, the environment that some of these State League teams provide for the players to make the step up. Sydney's NYL team is a team of nobodies. who can make the step up to their first grade team? Only youngsters recruited directly from NSWPL First Grade. Petratos and Cole the prime examples, Antonis the exception because he's been part of the NSWIS and AIS setup for so long already
whiskeymac
Guest
read some damning reports yesterday - with the sydney press even suggesting the mariners were a better team and...shock... deserved more media space over SFC. of course they wont give it to them but its a nice gesture of recognition. VL was excellent for the comp in the first season and it was good to see the club get the double, but it soon went to shite again. I was hoping this season they might at least get their heads sorted out but it seems they cant. new coach is on the wall but they need stability and, as you say tony, some sort of structured plan to build around for the future. SFC have been a shambles for way too long.
whiskeymac
Guest
Czechoslovakia? you are showing your iron curtain age =)
Luke
Guest
I know Sydney FC haven't had a strong youth development policy before, but can someone enlighten me on how the youth set-up at Sydney FC is now? Any better?
pete4
Guest
Chris - McFlynn, Coyne and possibly Bridge are regulars. Jamieson and Makela are on the outer. What I'm getting at next season with a new coach can make them a Championship threat again without a big turnover of players
Chris
Guest
Pete, those two sentences don't make any sense together. FIrstly you say that the team is good, but then you say that half the team (including the captain) needs to be replaced. Which is it?
pete4
Guest
I think Sydney have a good side with the right coach. Maybe just need to get replacements for Coyne, Jamieson, McFlynn, Makela and Bridge
Keiji
Guest
The largest issue for me is the lack of players who can turn defense into attack. McFlynn wins balls and protects the defense but after is then forced to find one of the five or more players making straight runs into the opposition's defense. Sydney does not have a true transition midfielder. Kisel comes close to this mould but is too eager to join attacks. Antonis is too inconsistent and loses the ball far too easily. Sydney need to find a reliable ball spraying central midfielder if they want to even begin playing a good brand of modern attacking football rather than the desperate long balls which hopefully drops for somebody - a tactic which just wont do justice for Sydney FC or its long suffering supporters. The attack is much too reliant on the talents of Carle and Emerton and there seems to be no real game plan to when Sydney are attacking or chasing the game besides from give the ball to Emerton and cross it in for Cazarine. SFC under Lavicka, although have become a more disciplined outfit, has no true identity or style of play which they've adopted in more than two seasons. The team doesn't keep possession but nor do they apply constant pressure. They are also slow on the transition from defense to attack (ruling out effective counter-attacking) and can't even seem to play a decent passing game.
Soul Ranch
Guest
Before the game on the weekend, they showed 'the two gamebreakers' of Sydney FC. Nicky Carle got a huge round of applause when he was shown and then Mark Bridge popped up on the screen. The silence was telling.
Sam
Guest
Retain Bosschaart , Carle, Kisel, Emmo, Cole, Beuchamp (he might be a bit slow, but he still can pull off the goods every now and then) and Antonis (who looks good, but has a long way to go). Scrap everyone else.
ItsCalledFootball
Roar Guru
I think the squad has potential to rise again, but Lavicka like Durakovic, has lost control of the dressing room and the players are not responding in the right way. As much as I hate seeing managers get sacked mid season, I'm starting to favour a change of manager ASAP. Lavicka himself has seen the writing on the wall and is starting to look at coaching opportunities back in Czechoslovakia.
Chris
Guest
An interesting aspect of this whole thing is that people often criticise players for underperforming. Implicit in that criticism is an acknowledgement that there is a certain degree of talent. So while everyone seems to say that the coach is a lovely guy, perhaps more criticism needs to fall on his shoulders for not getting current players to perform to their maximum.
Titus
Guest
Pretty accurate Tony, and as a fan it is extremely frustrating to spend so much time on thinking about the squad only to realise that no one at the club is doing so. My view is that there are some promising youngsters at the club at the moment, Antonis, Petratos, Mallia, Petkovski, Gligor, Lum, Chianese, Mijic. These kids should form a base for the squad along with established senior players in Carle, Emmo, Bosscharrt, Beauchamp. A few versatile squaddies in Cole, maybe Ryall and then bring in some genuine quality imports to fill the specific spots you need (midfield, striker). I agree about McFlynn, being a ball winner isn't enough, but I think his passion for the club means we should keep him, maybe chuck part of his wage into the backroom staff and start preparing him for a club position. Bridge I think has talent but he hasn't performed and needs to be let go, same for Jamieson, Grant, Coyne.
Tigerstoroar
Guest
Emerson, Carle, Cole, Petratos & Antonis. Show the rest the door. -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download The Roar's iPhone App in the App Store here.