Heart player of the season, Richard Garcia, faces a tough decision in the twilight of his career: does he stay with the club that gave him a lifeline or does he take the path of a certain E.T and “phone home”?
He could either stay with the Heart or head to his hometown club, Perth Glory. Both clubs will offer Garcia a financially rewarding package considering his standout 2012/13 season.
Garcia owes Melbourne Heart nothing; the club took a risk by recruiting the injury plagued Socceroos midfielder but made a financially responsible decision of only offering a 12-month contract.
Heart were never in a position to offer a player coming off a cruciate ligament injury a multi-year contract, but will be wishing they had after he showed his class at AAMI Park last season.
Heart fans would love to see Garcia team up with new recruits Harry Kewell and Massimo Murdocca, but I’m afraid I can’t see this happening.
Having already lost Fred, Simon Colosimo, Matt Thompson and Clint Bolton from last season’s squad, Garcia will be the most felt departure when the next Melbourne derby kicks off on October 12th.
Garcia is a Perth boy, but I don’t see that being the deciding factor when Garcia finally puts pen to paper. A destination 14,000 km away will play an important part in the Garcia decision; Brazil.
Garcia may have not played a role in the latest Socceroos World Cup qualifiers, but he is still on Holger’s radar.
At the moment squad places for Brazil are like getting into a Melbourne Cup field, 23 positions are available and we are still around 12 months out.
Garcia would be currently placed in the 40’s if we listed the individual players, but form and injuries will play their part, and Garcia must take every opportunity presented to him.
A move to Perth would not only see a return home, but would see him playing under a coach who has an intricate knowledge of the Socceroos curriculum, Alistair Edwards.
We saw the transformation late last season when Edwards took charge of Perth and with a pre-season in charge, we can only expect some attractive football to be played by Glory this season.
On the flip side, Heart coach Aloisi will be dealing with an entirely new squad and will be under early pressure to get results. Garcia’s chances of boarding a plane to Brazil significantly increase if he signs with the Glory.
Leadership is the final factor in the decision of Garcia; at the moment Heart are rudderless, losing vast experience from last season’s squad, and three or four potential candidates for captain.
At present, I don’t see any standout options. If Garcia signed on again for the Heart, I could see the armband being handed directly to him.
Perth Glory has one of the finest leaders in the league in Jacob Burns. Players seem to deliver that little bit extra when Burns gives you that deathly stare for fear of consequence at the conclusion of the match.
Garcia would struggle to find a tougher motivator as he enters his second season in the league.
Last season Garcia proved one of the signings of the league, and if he controlled the game you know your team was in for a great day.
Richie still has plenty to offer the league over the next few years, but this season he must be selfish in his decision of club choice, if he is considering giving himself the best possible chance to get to football’s holy grail, a World cup in Brazil.
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Here is the way the Roar expert panel sees all the action unfolding across the final weekend of play prior to the semi-finals.
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Sydney moved into fourth with their point but Glory's finals hopes are now officially extinguished.
Anthony Caceres is a player with immense talent and has a fantastic work rate, broke the deadlock against the Mariners in the 74th minute.
