Socceroo Mark Bresciano says he’ll explore training and playing friendlies in Italy while serving his four-month FIFA suspension.
Bresciano’s ban from official matches ends on March 13, but he’s allowed to play in friendly fixtures.
Instead of training with his Qatari club Al Gharafa, who rarely play friendlies, Bresciano will seek permission to train in Italy where clubs play weekly friendlies.
He says such a move will help him better prepare for Australia’s campaign for the World Cup in Brazil in June.
“If they (Al Gharafa) can’t put many friendlies on for me, I will try, with their permission, to go to another club and train where I know I am going to get a friendly game on a weekly basis,” Bresciano told Australian reporters in a teleconference on Thursday.
“I’m thinking Europe. Obviously I was in Italy for so long and I know every club has a friendly game against another opponent every week.”
In August 2012, Bresciano joined Al Gharafa from Al Nasr in the United Arab Emirates.
But Al Nasr challenged the transfer, with a FIFA dispute committee finding the move broke the sport’s rules.
Bresciano said he would ask Al Gharafa’s president, Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, for a loan to Italy, where he played for four clubs from 1999 to 2011.
“I’m not sure how he will take it, but I’m going to ask,” he said.
Bresciano appealed FIFA’s ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which last Friday rejected the Australian’s request to lift the suspension until the appeal was heard.
Instead, he will remain banned until March 13 and then be free to play at his third World Cup, regardless of his appeal’s outcome.
The 33-year-old said the saga initially sapped his spirit.
“I lost my enthusiasm at the start, I just didn’t want to train any more,” Bresciano said.
“I felt like I had been hard done by. Emotionally I was down. I was just an angry man walking around – I didn’t know where to turn or where to go.
“It took time and I got back on my feet and started training again.
“Obviously now the decision has been made I don’t have to worry about it any more, I don’t have to go to sleep thinking … `am I going to miss the World Cup’.
“Another positive about this (CAS) decision is I’m probably more tranquil now. I know this is it. I just have to wait to the 13th of March and then I play again, there is no worst-case scenario.”
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