There is a buzz in Macedonia Park. Perth’s season is slowly but surely gaining confidence and the results – however hard fought for – are coming.
The genesis of the 2022-23 season featured a series of unfortunate events for the Glory. Home matches were moved to Macedonia Park whilst HBF Park commenced renovation. Dressing room drama resulted in the dramatic exit of Bruno Fornaroli, inflicting further damage upon a squad already lacking depth and experience.
Questions raged as to how and where the goals would emerge.
And, ultimately, the managerial inexperience of Ruben Zadkovich was too obvious to dismiss as a potential risk in Perth’s season ahead.
And yet despite the trials and pessimism that have plagued the Glory, Zadkovich has delivered a respectable managerial performance in the face of tremendous adversity. Currently enjoying a four-game unbeaten streak and sitting three points shy of the top four, Perth’s relentless style of football finally seems to be coming to fruition.
Glory fans deserve to be pleasantly surprised and enjoy the season for what it has been: courageous. With the exception of a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of ladder-leaders Melbourne City in November, the Glory, even in defeat, find a way to grind out tight affairs.
Most excitedly, this transfer window has provided Glory fans welcomed news: the arrival of Socceroo Adam Taggart. Returning from Asia, he proved the difference in last week’s win against the Melbourne Victory, scoring two goals off the bench. Taggart, combined with the Williams’ brothers, will be weaponised by Zadkovich and utilised as the main source for goal-scoring.
Another promising addition to this window is the experienced Jordan Elsey. A defender most A-League fans are familiar with, Elsey provides Zadkovich a physical and confident centre-back who brings silverware experience in both league and cup campaigns.
Finally, there’s the development of the manager himself. Zadkovich, the A-League’s youngest manager at 36, is responsible for some players even older than himself. Yet the impression gathered by the Glory players’ positivity and Macedonia Park’s crowd energy suggests a unity that can only derive from a leader who values the quality of togetherness.
Tactics aside, Zadkovich deserves plaudit for maintaining the players’ self-belief and determination, particularly following the club’s ugly fallout with Fornaroli.
From a wider Australian football perspective, Zadkovich’s emergence as a young and devoted football manager is encouraging.
Arriving on the professional scene as a young manager can be fraught with danger. A mentally draining job, to fail terribly can be a borderline traumatic experience and hamper development or, even worse, see one permanently depart from the game we love.
For Zadkovich – and the Glory – a curious future awaits.
Cavaquinho
Roar Rookie
For a player with his Championship and League One experience Beever’s skills and fitness are very modest. However, he presents as a terrific club man and given his seniority in the team, may be a significant source of the identified ”quality of togetherness”. Defensively, I think Khelifi has a lot of problems but if Glory can make the finals he can provide the “X factor” the side needs for scoring goals against the best defences. A constructive midfielder like Ninkovic instead of Elsey would have been better for Glory because despite the work rate that Zadkovich has got from Amini he is not providing the sort of attacking opportunities that are needed. We haven’t seen enough of McEneff to see if he is that player. Playing Ryan Williams as a striker instead of as a winger has been interesting to watch and indicative of Zadkovich’s potential as a coach who can imagine solutions instead of doing “the same old, same old”.
Crusty
Guest
Keevers kept the Glory competitive, I think you'll find.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
Towards the end when they moved Elsey out wide on the right they were creating quite a few chances but woodwork and defence saw them off..pretty entertaining though.
Coastyboi
Guest
Perth player half an hour with an extra man, yet Wellington still seemed the better team.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
It’s the away games that are more likely to be their undoing but on their day “sky’s the limit”
Harry Brill
Roar Rookie
Great mentions Stevo. Tafak is definitely cooking something special with Wellington. They’ll be a difficult team to beat come finals and in my opinion are the biggest threat to Melbourne City.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
Zadkovich has a good attitude, and this rubs off on the players. Ryan Williams I thought here we go again, a useful talented player but on the lazy side, under Zadkovich however he really has upped his game he should be coming into Socceroos calculations, Khelifi tremendous player he looked useful like most overseas players do now he like Williams have upped themselves to the next level in the fitness stakes. David Williams is not Ryan Williams brother its Rhys Williams, has improved but certainly not near the level of the other two. Amini at Sydney FC he was random, now Amini really put in the last match, has really knuckled down. I dont agree with the Elsey move, they have enough center backs, it seems to be a compulsion for A-league coaches, back threes center backs all over the field, it works defensively if you park the bus. I think he has done Pappas an enormous favour, Elsey as center back was a disaster for Newcastle.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
I’m pretty sure that the pre season predictions were all about PG finishing bottom of the ladder and how tough it was going to be for them. I’m always a fan of upsetting the guides, predictions and even the form book although there is a fair way to go yet. I don’t recall anyone predicting MV would be propping up the table although there were plenty who thought SFC would struggle. Anyway, hope RZ has some success at Perth and they continue to defy the critics.
Stevo
Roar Rookie
Looking forward to Nix v Perth this afternoon. Zadko was a straight ahead no nonsense player who clearly has a football brain and may also have some very good people management skills. I think he's weathered the Bruno crisis pretty well - anyway, Bruno leaving may have been a good thing for Perth. Handball the headache to Popovic :laughing: Ufuk has shown himself to be a quality coach and overseen some astute signings including Kraev and Zawada - all this during the COVID crisis. No small feat for a team that spent a lot of time away from NZ during this period.
Grem
Roar Rookie
The team that he initially had did not look good on paper. Tony Sage, who has put a lot of money and time into Glory appeared to be having a season off and rethinking his outlays. Zadkovic has done a great job with Glory, who have come good, and he looks a very promising manager. He was a decent footballer, but appears to have more to offer as a coach which means he may have a long and fruitful career – difficult to achieve in coaching. The A Leagues All Access show on 10 Play or Paramount Plus – Beautiful – Not Perfect (about Zadkovic) is a great watch.