Perth goalkeeper Danny Vukovic is keen to see Alistair Edwards remain in charge at the club amidst conflicting reports regarding the coach’s future.
Perth Glory goalkeeper Danny Vukovic is keen to see Alistair Edwards remain in charge at the West Australian club into next season and beyond amidst conflicting press reports regarding the coach’s future.
Edwards’ existing contract will expire at the end of the current campaign, but Vukovic is hoping that the former Socceroos striker will be offered the opportunity to continue the overhaul of the club that has already prompted a significant improvement in results.
“Anywhere in world football when a new coach comes in, all the players are on a level playing field again and everyone’s trying to impress the new coach and it’s exactly the same here,” Vukovic said.
“It’s been a breath of fresh of air and I’d love to see Alistair take the job.
“He’s done an exceptional job so far with three wins from four, he’s got some great ideas and I feel as if I’m learning every training session.
“Alistair is all about his philosophy and the way he wants us to play and you can see that he truly believes in it.
“When you see someone so passionate about what they believe in, I guess it’s infectious and the boys have really taken it on board and tried to put it into practice.
“It was never going to happen overnight, it’s a work in progress, but as long as we’re improving every week, that’s all that matters.”
The Glory will look to turn up the heat in the finals race once again this weekend when they take on cellar-dwellers Wellington and Vukovic is confident that the men in purple can down his former club at nib Stadium.
“The positive for us is that we’ve put ourselves in a good position now,” he said.
“We’re two points off Newcastle with a game in hand, but we need to get maximum points from our remaining three games.
“Wellington is a team we believe we can beat, but we know it’s going to be a tough game and if we don’t turn up and perform to our potential, it’s going to be a battle for us.
“But we’re confident that if we set into practice what Alistair wants us to do, then we can get the three points.
“If we get a win on the weekend and a few results elsewhere go our way, we could be sitting fifth.
“The belief is there and we’re looking to make it three out of three on Sunday.”
Assistant coach Gareth Naven also warned that the Phoenix would provide a stern test despite their lowly ladder position and went on to reveal that versatile defender Steve Pantelidis (Achilles) is likely to be the hosts’ only major injury doubt ahead of Sunday’s must-win clash.
“Phoenix were highly competitive against Wanderers last time out,” he said.
“And their coach will have them well organised, drilled and competitive, so as per normal, it’ll be a tough game.
“But we’re in a good position with the squad and now it’s about picking the right people for the right job.
“Steve had a short training session yesterday (Monday) and it’s a case of slowly, slowly with him.
“Our physio department will look at him and make their assessment later this week.”
