An avalanche of goals but still some clean sheets to end the season: The A-League players who were the difference in Round 26
Joe Lolley was outstanding for the Sky Blues, scoring a brace as Sydney FC equaled their biggest ever victory.
Dino Kresinger briefly left Western Sydney Wanderers’ songsheet on Wednesday to suggest the A-League club are daring to dream they can win the championship in their first season.
Expectations that the club can seriously challenge for silverware have risen with their place on the ladder over the past two months, but coach Tony Popovic and captain Michael Beauchamp have repeatedly tried to put a lid on the club’s title expectations.
But Croatian striker Kresinger wasn’t interested in sticking to the low-key approach when asked before training whether the third-placed Wanderers, who are on a three-match winning streak, can go all the way to win April’s grand final.
“Yes, that’s now in our minds,” he said.
“We want to be the best. We are really playing good … (and) just want to keep winning.”
“We knew it would be tough with a new club, so we needed some time to settle and play good. The fans – this is what I didn’t expect – they are unbelievable.”
Popovic then stepped up to say that while there’s a good mood in the camp following Saturday night’s gutsy 1-0 win over Melbourne Heart when they played with 10 men for 80 minutes, he still refuses to entertain an unlikely championship win.
“I don’t know about all the way yet,” said a poker-faced Popovic.
“We had 10 points after nine games. We turned that around in nine matches and now we’re sitting third. So we know with nine games to go it can change again.
“When you’re winning, confidence is high and there’s a lot of belief in the group and they’re enjoying their football.
“We’re pleased with how we’re progressing.
“To do what we did with 10 men – the players were really positive and had a lot of belief not to just sit back but to go forward and try to win the game.”
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