Milicic named Socceroos assistant coach

Socceroos head coach Ange Postecoglou has appointed Ante Milicic as his new assistant for the next three years.

The 39-year-old will leave his post as Tony Popovic’s assistant at Western Sydney to join the national team full-time at the end of the current A-League season.

He will, however, link up with Postecoglou in London for Australia’s friendly against Ecuador on March 5.

Aurelio Vidmar will stay on as an assistant coach and continue with his duties as head coach of the national under-23 team.

Milicic, a former Socceroo, said he is honoured to be granted the opportunity to work under Postecoglou and is looking forward to the challenge.

“I’m excited to be able to work with Ange, especially with the World Cup coming up as well as the Asian Cup in Australia and with so many talented players starting to break through,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.

“I’ve had a good apprenticeship under John van ‘t Schip (at Melbourne Heart) and Poppa (Tony Popovic) as well as the 2009 and 2011 under-20 World Cups as an assistant to Jan Versleijen and I’m looking forward to continuing that under Ange.”

Postecoglou said Milicic is a driven coach and is a perfect fit for the Socceroos, given his experience at domestic and international level.

“I wanted the best people to come in and contribute to the growth and success of the national team and I’m confident Ante will add further expertise to our existing staff,” he said.

“(He) will play a part in an exciting new era as we look to build the next golden generation of Australian footballers.”

Wanderers chairman Lyall Gorman said the club supported Milicic’s decision and wished him well in the new role.