Sydney FC striker Apostolos Stamatelopoulos has stated he’s happy to be the villain after scoring against his former side, the Newcastle Jets, in the Sky Blues’ 1-1 semi-final draw.
Stamatelopoulos, 27, previously played for the Jets in the 2024/25 Isuzu UTE A-League season and scored an impressive 17 goals in 25 games, which earned him a move to Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership.
The striker, who put a clever header over Newcastle’s James Delianov to give Sydney a 1-0 lead in the 50th minute of Saturday night’s clash, opened up post-game on his decision not to celebrate against his former team and why he’s happy to be the villain at the home of his former club in the semi-final second leg.
“I felt it was needed [not celebrating],” he said.
“I still have respect for the club [Newcastle].
“But I’m here now, I’ve got a job to do here and we want to make the Grand Final, so we’ve got to go again.
“I’m happy to be the villain.”
After pushing the premiers to the limit, Stamatelopoulos believes the side should build confidence from their performance, finding it was the first time the Sky Blues have ‘clicked’ under new Head Coach Patrick Kisnorbo.
“All the work we’ve been doing with the new gaffer. Sometimes it just clicks and everyone performs well.
“We definitely could have had two more goals easily, I reckon.
“We set up in a certain way to stop them getting through the middle and I think we did it really well.
“We executed the press exactly how we wanted to… defensively, I felt like we controlled large parts of the game.
“We all said after the game that it was our best performance under the new boss, and we’re all very confident going into the next game.”
The striker expressed the importance of Joe Lolley, who returned to the side off the bench, coming on for Akol Akon in the 77th minute.
“When someone like Joe comes on, it shifts attention. It makes it easier for me because defenders start focusing on him more,” Stamatelopoulos said.
“For a striker, it’s perfect having someone that deadly around you because defenders can switch off for a second.”
The 27-year-old joined Sydney on a short-term loan in February and has featured in 12 of a possible 13 matches since his arrival. ‘Stama’ commented on the move and his form since making the trip across the pond.
“I think it’s reinvigorated me.
“I was obviously doing well there [Motherwell], but last season was tough with injuries.
“I just needed a season where I could get back to being sharp and fit. It’s taken me a little bit, but I feel like I’m back to myself again.”
Following their draw at Allianz, Stamatelopoulos and the Sky Blues head north to McDonald Jones Stadium with everything to play for in the second leg against the Jets as the striker prepares to take on the villain role once more.
