After weeks of instability on and off the field, Melbourne Victory, the A-League’s most entertaining team, has once again stolen the spotlight, this time with the sensational sacking of their head coach Mehmet Durakovic.
The move comes as no surprise to the Australian football community. During the six months Mehmet was in charge of the Victory, he failed to bring on-field success and consistency, leaving the club sitting out of the top six despite its somewhat limitless arsenal of superstars, including the likes of Carlos Hernandez, Archie Thomson and, of course, Harry Kewell.
The 2011-12 A-League season was meant to be the dawn of a new era for the Vics. After firing inaugural coach Ernie Merrick and a number of key personnel, the club attempted to reinvent itself on and off the field as the biggest and best club in Australia.
However, good intentions do not guarantee good results, and as the A-League season progressed, serious question began to be asked of a club that failed to show the level of football and professionalism expected of it.
Fans were continually told to wait for the team to ‘gel’, however as more time passed, good results proved elusive. The fans, understandably, became restless.
But how did it all go so pear-shaped for the Victory, and what needs to be done to get the club in the right direction?
For many, the fifth Melbourne derby was the last straw? Once again the Victory lost the lead and the match, with an ugly argument between Hernandez and Kewell displaying the friction within the team itself.
The following two matches saw the Victory lose in stunning fashion, snapping the Roar out of their losing streak and conceding in a mere 18 seconds against the Central Coast.
The Victory found themselves sitting eighth on the table, with little hope and falling morale.
Within days of the result, Durakovic found himself without a job, and Magilton was flying to Australia.
The announcement of Magilton as manager left the Australian football public shocked and confused. With high profile names such as Roy Keane and Gianfranco Zola linked to the job, the little known Northern Irishman was a surprise choice.
However, early signs seem positive, with reports signalling a lift in player morale, football direction and professionalism. There are even whispers that Magilton has brought an assistant down to assist with match analysis.
Fans should take the news with a grain of salt though, it should be remembered that morale and a new football philosophy was introduced when Durakovic initially took the reins. Magilton, though, possess one valuable asset Durakovic didn’t; experience.
Magilton has coached league football and has all the right credentials on paper however Melbourne needs more then a paper giant (as their team sheet has proven).
Magilton will need to motivate and utilise the players efficiently to produce team performances fans can be proud of, but unlike other clubs Victory comes with an added challenge: managing superstar egos.
If the likes of Hernadez, Kewell and even Muscat and the outspoken Foschini can be kept in check and get on with doing their jobs, Victory may start to see their season turn in the right direction.
Football is as much a mental game as a physical one. Victory undoubtedly possess the individual skill to be a threat, but Magilton’s challenge will be directing that skill and implementing a single, motivated, united mindset around the club in the players and the supporters.
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