Opinion
With the end of the season rapidly approaching, A-League clubs are already working frantically behind the scenes to recruit players for 2021-22.
Each year there are normally a few players who are playing in Europe and want to finish their careers in Australia, and this off-season could be a big one, with Mathew Leckie announcing he’s coming back home.
“For me what’s important is to be playing consistently and playing every week when available. Then it’s up to me to perform and keep my spot,” he said.
After a successful ten-year spell in Germany that was often blighted by moving teams, manager changes and injuries, Leckie definitely won’t have any issues finding game time in the A-League and would be almost certain to start at any club that signs him.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
His rise to fame started as a teenager with the Bullen Lions, where he scored a goal every 2.4 games. The form at Bullen brought him to the attention of multiple A-League clubs, with Melbourne Victory being the first to have a look at him through trials. But Victory passed on the opportunity, and like a thief in the night Adelaide United pounced on the 18-year-old Leckie without a trial.
Leckie seized his opportunity with the Reds, scoring eight goals in 35 games and becoming a crowd favourite for his energetic displays. At that age he already had the skills that would make him a star – blistering pace to burn, the ability to go on his left and right foot and the ability to hurdle through challenges and bounce off defenders while keeping tight control of the ball.
Europe beckoned, and Germany is where he has spent the majority of his career, consistently scoring several goals a year and proving a handful for defences.
People appreciate his club career, but his international career is a different story altogether.
Playing in multiple World Cup campaigns, winning an Asian Cup on home soil and scoring 11 goals in 63 international matches seems like a well-respected career, but outside of Robbie Kruse, Leckie might be the most maligned Australian footballer of the past decade.
Fans have constantly debated what his best position is for Australia, what he exactly brings to the team and if whether he’s been restricted to one place on the park due to coaches playing favourites. But regardless of your opinion, there’s no denying that Mathew Leckie has had a stellar career.
As for which A-League club he might end up at, there have been three teams who have already signalled their intentions.
Melbourne City have seemingly been the frontrunners all season to sign Leckie, and the mooted deal had been rumoured to be complete for many months. The possible hold-up could be due to the situations with Jamie Maclaren and Craig Noone – will they leave the club or will they stay?
Melbourne Victory have reportedly offered the most money of all three teams, but will the fact that the Victory passed over Leckie as a teenager play into his decision, especially with a taskmaster Tony Popovich at the helm, or will returning to Victoria be too large a factor to ignore?
Perhaps the dark horse of the bunch are the same team who swooped all those years ago, Adelaide United. Leckie’s strike partner, Bruce Djite, is the director of football of the club, and their friendship would surely be a good selling point.
Adelaide, however, are perhaps the most frugal spenders in the league, and financially the offer would be nowhere near that on the table from City or Victory. All the transfer kitty would go on his signature, which would mean sacrificing the signing of local hero Craig Goodwin.
But with a generational bunch of youth coming through the club now, the mentorship of a 30-year-old Leckie for the best young attacking talent in the nation could be beneficial for both.
Each team has its pros and cons, and the lure of Leckie will continue throughout winter.
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