Western Sydney Wanderers are almost certain to be without first-choice goalkeeper and club captain Lawrence Thomas for the season-opening Sydney Derby this weekend.
Thomas, who was appointed Wanderers captain following the departure of Brazilian defender Marcelo, suffered an ankle injury earlier in pre-season after tripping over a stray ball in training and, as such, looks set to be sidelined for the first few rounds of the season after undergoing surgery.
“Minimal chance,” said head coach Alen Stajcic when asked if Thomas will play any part in Saturday night’s hotly-anticipated Sydney Derby.
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“He’s obviously missed a lot of preseason through injury, but when we talk about leadership and human qualities and virtues, he’s number one. I don’t think I’ve come across many better characters and leaders in 20 or 30 years of football.
Stajcic went on to say: “Obviously, we want him on the pitch, but you know what he’s done off the pitch is 10 out of 10…”
Battling it out to replace Thomas in the derby will be one of Jordan Holmes, Taiga Harper or Tristan Vidackovic, with Stajcic admitting he’s yet to decide which member of his goalkeeping union will get the nod to start.
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“No we don’t know, we don’t know,” he said. “That spot’s up for grabs. We’ve got three other goalkeepers, and they’ll all be fighting for that spot for this weekend, just like all the on-field players are.”
Stajcic is preparing to take charge of his first Isuzu UTE A-League clash since being appointed Wanderers boss following the departure of head coach Marko Rudan at the end of 2023-24.
Western Sydney’s new boss spent last season at the helm of Perth Glory.
“My expectation is to win the competition, there’s enough talent in this group to to compete and beat everyone, and there’s a good belief and confidence growing within the group,” Stajcic told reporters.
“I’ve said it many times before in the previous few years, the A-League is so tight where a little bit of momentum and confidence helps any team.
“We saw that with the (Central Coast) Mariners, especially last year, where they lost a bit of momentum at the beginning of the year, but once they got into a good groove, they built a lot of confidence throughout the year and the league is that tight that that can happen for anyone.
“There’s no doubt there’s enough ability and potential within this group where we can’t (not) make a good case for winning the title.”
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Potentially central to any success the Wanderers achieve this season will be Spaniard Juan Mata.
The FIFA World Cup and UEFA Champions League winner joined the Wanderers on a one-year deal having last played for Japanese side Vissel Kobe and while Stajcic wouldn’t be drawn on whether Mata is fit to start the Sydney Derby, he did say he’s likely to play a key role in the club’s season nonetheless.
“He’s going to be an important piece of the puzzle,” said Stajcic when discussing the former Chelsea and Manchester United star. “You know, whether that’s for 30 minutes, 60 minutes, 90 minutes, it’s the same as every other player, I don’t know yet.
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He added: “He’s such an influential figure around that. Finding out his strengths and weakness is an important component, just like it is for anyone else. But as I said, just a starting point of what he brings to the team is really, you know, we expected a lot, but he’s given almost already more than what we expected.”
Former CommBank Matildas and Central Coast Mariners boss Stajcic arrived in Western Sydney having departed Perth Glory at the end of the 2024-25 Isuzu UTE A-League season.
The 50-year-old endured a tough time in Western Australia with the club spending the vast majority of his only season in charge in receivership and ultimately finished the campaign in last place.
However, despite that challenging season with the Glory, Stajcic says he’s full of energy heading into the new Isuzu UTE A-League campaign; one which he believes could prove to be a special one.
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“You know just watching that ad the other day, it’s sort of sent goosebumps and chills up and down my spine,” said Stajcic, referring to the A-Leagues 20th Anniversary celebratory video below.
“It’s just so exciting that everything culminates to this point. I think the A League’s had a little bit of a lull over the last three or four years, but I feel like there’s a new buzz around the community.
He continued: “I feel like there’s a new buzz around the league. Knowing that the games nearly sold out with six days to go, with only a couple of thousand tickets left, just shows that there is that energy in the community.
“I’m expecting a great season. I’m expecting everything to start accelerating again, and us reaching, you know, the so-called potential that we all think that football has. Hopefully this club’s at the leading edge of that”
