Saturday’s Grand Final rematch at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium is the start of a massive week according to Sky Blues’ Head Coach Steve Corica.
With games against Perth, Wellington and the Wanderers in the next seven days, there are huge ramifications on the line, not least the fact that Sydney FC will claim the Hyundai A-League Premiership with three straight wins.
“The boys are aware of that, it’s an important week, if we win all three it’s very simple we win the Premiership,” Corica said.
“That’s great, that’s what we’re trying to do, if you do win every game this week you get something out of it. The boys are looking forward to the challenge.
“Three massive games and all very important for us, we want to win every game.
“It’s about making sure the boys play to their high standards, recovering exceptionally well after the games and giving them the best chance to back up. We’ve got scenarios for each game and we just have to see what happens in the Perth game first.
“For me it’s business as usual, I just concentrate on the job at hand and focus on that,” Corica continued.
“Perth are a very good team, they haven’t been picking up the points they would like. For me it’s making sure we do the right things, we’ve worked very hard at training and prepared ourselves for a very difficult game tomorrow.
“They’re a good team, there’s been a few changes to last year but not a lot.
“We have to be at our best in attack to break them down and on the other hand defend well because they have a lot of quality up front and can score goals.”
Corica welcomed the return of injured trio Michael Zullo, Luke Ivanovic and Chris Zuvela to the squad this week, the first time he’s had a fully fit squad to choose from, as he hinted at possible squad rotation with a busy schedule coming up.
“The medical staff have worked hard to get a few boys back from long term injury,” he said.
“It’s good to have them all back, it lifts the standard of the sessions which is going to lead into the final part of the season which is very important.
“We’ve got three games this week, we want to do very similar to last week and freshen up the squad each game.
“If we can do that I think we give ourselves the best chance of winning each game. It’s good to have everyone available and ready for selection it gives me a headache as well.
“It’s great to have two quality players [at left back],” he continued.
“Joel King has done an exceptional job, he’s improving all the time and getting better and better each games.
“It’s great for us, it shows he has the quality to play in the A-League and internationally at some stage, but it’s good to have Zullo back as well training and putting some pressure on Joel as well.”
Sydney FC take on Perth Glory in a Grand Final rematch at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium on Saturday (kick off 5pm AEDT). With a family friendly kick off time, and Macca’s Families on the Field post match, bring the whole family down for a great afternoon out.
