What will Sydney FC do if they make the finals?

After the win against Perth Glory last weekend, mainstream media has been espousing how Sydney FC have bought themselves a bit of breathing space after the events sparked by the previous game against Adelaide United.

A win is a win, and the three points certainly helped the club’s league table position.

But I am still worried for the immediate future of my favourite football team. The game was a bit of a microcosm for Sydney FC’s season so far with patches of good play interspersing relatively base football and a happy ending for the fans.

After the game against Adelaide and the reactions thereafter, I saw no end in sight to the current malaise that has settled on the club (some argue ever since Season 1 of the A-League).

Stories of a poor club culture, disunity in the current team, a manager who hasn’t shown much interest in the tactical side of the game since being appointed, and an incompetent and interfering board made me wonder how things could ever improve to match the standards of the Roar or the Mariners, not least our cross-town rivals.

However after playing a theoretical game of pick-the-winners the other day, I amazingly found out that should my predictions come true, Sydney FC would achieve the unthinkable and sneak into the top four.

This I think is mainly due to the fact they have a very favourable schedule in comparison with the likes of Adelaide United and Wellington Phoenix for the rest of the season. Out of eight remaining games, six are in NSW – the others being a trip to Adelaide in Round 24 and the Big Blue in Melbourne the week after.

Conjecture in the media has it that Frank Farina has a clause in his contract that states it can be extended after this season dependent upon a top four finish. I say conjecture, as it was previously reported that he had signed a contract extension of two years just prior to the end of last season.

I have had misgivings about Sydney FC management ever since their decision to extend his contract last season despite not making the top six.

Now obviously the chances of this happening are somewhat remote given the current situation the club finds itself in and the type of football they have played these past few seasons.

Not least of all as Sydney FC have only picked up seven of the previous 33 points on offer since breaking a club record by winning four games in a row at the end of Round 8.

However, stranger things have happened in football and both Melbourne Heart and the Phoenix have both gone on very good runs after their poor starts to the season, so one can always hope!

So it’s quite possible that I’m being too much of an optimist as an Sydney FC supporter and Sydney FC have next to no chance of making the top four. I had after all predicted them to win four of their remaining games and only lose once.

However, it made me ask myself the question – what will Sydney FC management do if in fact they achieve the unthinkable (for most A-League fans, and particularly those wanting Farina sacked)?

Given that Farina achieves the condition of the alleged contractual clause, can he still be cast adrift?

How would Tony Pignata and Scott Barlow view such a finish to the regular season?

Have Sydney FC already started looking for a replacement and if so, how would such a finish affect those plans? How will the fans react, especially The Cove who’ve come in for increased scrutiny in the wake of their recent protests against the club’s management?

Again, I might be looking through rose-tinted glasses here, but Sydney FC has the potential to have a great season next year if they get the right manager.

The recent re-signings of Petkovic, Janjetovic and Abbas, combined with the players already contracted for next season incl. Antonis, Carle, Gameiro, Grant, Ryall, and Triantis mean that Sydney FC have a fairly good base of players to work with.

Obviously, with Alessandro Del Piero’s contract situation uncertain (it was speculated in the media recently that Sydney FC will not be continuing their association with him despite his desire to stay in Sydney after this season), a lot will depend upon who Sydney FC’s next marquee player is.

They actually have two spots outside the salary cap available now after Emerton’s retirement earlier this year.

So there’s a good chance to continue the good work achieved by signing ADP through another great marquee signing by matching that with the right football staff to guide the team.

If David Traktovenko is serious about his ownership and involvement in Sydney FC, he could do a lot worse than invest more money to cover both those areas.

Thus we may ask ourselves – with such a comparatively blank canvass at their disposal, how will Sydney FC management act?

Will they use this opportunity to do something historic (for them!) and strategically plan how the club is to be run for the next decade?

Or will we see another short-term sugar-rush that is the Bling FC trademark A-League fans have become used to?

My personal preference is to thank Farina for his contribution and let him go.

Then they can hire a manager who better fits what the club needs right now.

That would be someone who could work under a technical director that interacts between the top management and the football staff and is in charge of implementing a footballing strategy which incorporates a clearer philosophy for the whole club and a definitive style of play.

This can then be used to improve the recruitment and retention of players for all the football teams (incl. W-League and NYL sides).

A lot of non-Sydney FC supporters have commented on The Roar and other online forums that a strong Sydney FC benefits the A-League and I agree.

Just like a strong Victory, Wanderers and Heart benefit the A-League, a strong Sydney FC is needed.

That’s not to say strong teams from the other clubs don’t benefit the A-League, it’s just an acknowledgement that Sydney and Melbourne are the two big drivers of sport in this country.

I am not meaning to disrespect the great contribution Brisbane has made to football in Australia recently, but that’s a topic for another thread…