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Foreign imports continue their migration to Australia to participate in the A-League. From its humble beginnings, the nation’s premier football competition now possesses the quality of play to attract some fine players.
It’s fair to say that now more than ever before, it’s a particularly exciting time to be a fan of the A-League.
This off-season a host of bright prospects have made the switch down under, despite being relative unknowns to some.
They may not be in the same category as Alessandro Del Piero, Emile Heskey or Shinji Ono, but there’s no reason why they can’t have a stirring impact on the division too.
With the season nearly upon us, let’s take a moment to learn more about the latest foreigners to hit our shores.
Melbourne Victory had been searching long and hard their marquee man and at one point it looked like they had pulled off the coup of securing William Gallas from Tottenham.
While the announcement of Pablo Contreras may not have been big name signing the fans were expecting, he brings with him a wealth experience for both club and country.
67 caps for his native Chile and involvement in the UEFA Champions League during his recent stint with Olmypiacos will fuel the supporters’ optimism.
While Ange Postecoglou has done a fine job in attack with his new employers, he’s struggled to replicate the same defensive solidity he showed at Brisbane.
His final and championship-winning season at the Roar saw the team let in just 28 goals.
That’s a grand total of 20 goals less than what the Victory conceded last season.
Clearly an imposing defender was needed to bolster the centre of defence and aid the competition between duo Adrian Leijer and Nick Ansell, and in Contreras they could have found the perfect inclusion.
For the club’s crosstown rivals, Melbourne Heart, the shock injury to new marquee signing Orlando Engelaar, which sees him out until January, was lessened by the capture of Michael Mifsud.
The diminutive forward, just 165cm tall, is the captain of Malta and has scored a 37 goals in 99 appearances for his country.
He’s an exciting playmaker and deadly finisher, and the 32-year-old is famously known for his brace for Coventry City that knocked English giants Manchester United out of the 2007 League Cup.
With the capture of arguably Australian’s greatest footballer, Harry Kewell, the forward will have an unpredictable edge that was lacking last term.
At Newcastle United a Dutch import has been snapped up, and he brings with him an impressive list of credentials.
He goes by the name of Kew Jaliens, and the 35-year-old is a defender with appearances on the big stage.
Notching up 10 caps during 2006-2007 for one of world football’s heavyweights in the Netherlands is a considerable feat.
And the former AZ Alkmaar centre-back represented his country at the 2006 World Cup and was a major contributor to AZ’s 2009 Eredivisie title-winning side.
Expect the man standing at 183cm to be an imposing figure in the heart of the Jets’ defence.
At Adelaide new coach Josep Gombau was quick to sign players who would help implement his passing style.
Gombau, who has a coaching background with Barcelona, used his Spanish connections to great effect by bringing in two countrymen, attacker Cirio and central midfielder Isaias.
Cirio, 28, has spent most of his career in Spain in the Segunda Division A and B.
In 2007-08 he played predominately as a striker for Greek Superleague outfit Atromitos F.C and was the club’s leading goal-scorer with 22 goals, despite the team being relegated.
He possesses great speed and will be a handful for any A-League defence this season.
His teammate Isaias, 28, is a midfielder that has featured in the La Liga with Hercules CF in 2010-2011.
With a healthy football pedigree, both acquisitions will have United fans eagerly anticipating their debuts for the club.
Foreign talent is now at a premium in the A-League.
The aforementioned players are more welcome additions to the top tier of Australian football, but just which players in particular will set the league alight this season?
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