Sydney FC Head Coach Steve Corica was respectful towards former Sky Blues star Milos Ninkovic at today’s pre-Derby press conference – but added “he is the enemy now”.
Ahead of Saturday’s Sydney Derby, Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers key men faced the press together at the new Allianz Stadium, and the main talking point was the Ninkovic’s switch to the west of the city.
Corica said: “We have a lot of respect for Milos and what he achieved at the club, but he is the enemy now.
“The whole situation builds to the hostile atmosphere, and I know that it’s going to be hostile toward Ninko [Ninkovic],” Corica said.
“It’s a derby, the fans are passionate about the club and we want to put on a performance for them.”
Luke Brattan highlighted the fact his former team-mate is one of the best players the league has ever seen.
“You want to play with the best players, and he is one of the best to ever play in the league. Like Bimbi [Steve Corica] said, he is now the enemy and I am going to do everything I can to not let him do what he does,’’ he added.
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“It is what it is” he replied when asked about Milos crossing the divide.
“It’s part of football. You can’t just leave to the rivals and nothing is going to be said. For us though, it is not about him, it is about three points, performing well for our team and our crowd.”
Milos Ninkovic was keen to acknowledge his achievements in Sky Blue but showed his commitment to his new club.
“I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. My legacy is always going to be here, the trophies I won, the trophies we won.”
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“I still have so many Sydney FC jerseys throughout the years and I am going to keep them for the rest of my life,” Ninkovic added.
“I am now a Western Sydney Wanderers player and I am going to give everything I can to win the game for them.”
Like Brattan, he suggested the situation “is what it is.”
