Western Sydney Wanderers have bolstered their attack for the Isuzu UTE A-League 2025-26 season, signing star striker Kosta Barbarouses on a one-year deal.
Barbarouses joins the Wanderers after leaving boyhood club Wellington Phoenix, where he scored an impressive 25 goals in 54 appearances across the last three Isuzu UTE A-League seasons.
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Now a member of the A-Leagues’ 100-goal club, the 35-year-old four-time champion heads to Western Sydney to help fill the void left by star duo – reigning Johnny Warren Medallist Nicolas Milanovic (Aberdeen) and Zac Sapsford (Dundee United), who have moved abroad.
“It’s a very enticing football project,” said Wellington’s 2024-25 Golden Boot winner Barbarouses.
“I think the way the club, the players, the staff, all sort of came together last year, it was something I saw and thought I’d love to be a part of that.
“Wanderers are a very, entertaining attacking team that looks like they’re very much together and they’ve got a good bond. And the fans, of course, are right behind them
“I want to come here and be successful and obviously to bring my experience, goals, and presence, and to help everyone around me. Ultimately, I want to help the team be successful and win trophies.:
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Barbarouses – who is the first New Zealander to score 100 goals in the Isuzu UTE A-League, and just the fourth to do so overall – added: “There’s no point hiding behind any words, we want to win things. That’s why we’re all here so that’s always the goal.”
No stranger to the Harbour City, Barbarouses previously spent three seasons with arch-rivals Sydney FC where he won the Premiership/Championship double in the 2019-20 campaign.
Despite a disappointing end to his time in Wellington which saw the Phoenix finish 11th last season, Barbarouses still cleaned up at the club’s end of season awards night as he claimed six awards including Player of the Year, Players’ Player of the Year and the Members’ Player of the Year award.
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“We’re delighted to welcome Kosta and his family to the Wanderers,” said Western Sydney head coach Alen Stajcic.
“His experience and leadership will be a great asset to the squad.
“Kosta is a professional in every sense; driven, humble, and committed to the team above all else.
He added: “He embodies the character we want in our dressing room and what it means to represent Western Sydney.”
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Barbarouses will form part of a new-look attack at the Wanderers for the upcoming campaign following a series of departures so far this off-season as he prepares to link up with Socceroo Brandon Borrello at CommBank Stadium.
CLICK HERE TO HEAD TO THE ISUZU UTE A-LEAGUE TRANSFER CENTRE
