Playmaker Thomas Broich has been declared fit and is set to start when Brisbane Roar take on Melbourne Heart at Suncorp Stadium on Friday.
Playmaker Thomas Broich has been declared fit and is set to start when Brisbane Roar take on Melbourne Heart at Suncorp Stadium on Friday.
Central Coast’s lean run of four points from five games has seen their lead in the premiership race plummet from 11 points to three, with the Roar able to become overnight leaders if they account for the Heart on Friday.
After dismantling in-form Perth Glory with 10-men and without Broich away from home last weekend, the defending Hyundai A-League champions are strong favourites to make it five wins on the trot.
Having missed the clash with Glory after sustaining a shoulder injury against Melbourne Victory a week prior, Broich has been named to start in his return from injury this week.
“He’s pretty keen to play, so he’ll strip up tomorrow night and we’ll give it a go,” said Postecoglou
“He’s getting better every day, a lot more comfortable than he was last week, and he’s really keen to play, so I guess we’ll give it a run and see how he goes.”
“If he’s right, he’s right, there’s no point trying to protect him or anything like that. it’s an important game for us (Friday) night and he’s put his hand up to play, so if he’s ready to go, and he trained ok, that’s all I need to know and then he’ll play.”
Postecoglou, who will coach his 200th professional game on Friday, said that the whole year’s preparation had been geared towards having the depth and fitness to play midweek games and Broich’s role against the Heart would influenced by the Roar’s Asian Champions League opener on Tuesday.
“We’ve been preparing for this from the start of pre-season. Our whole training program has been about being able to front up midweek,” he said.
“We’ve worked really, really hard on a Tuesday or a Wednesday all year just for this purpose, so there’s no point protecting or hiding or trying to prioritise one over the other – they’re equally important.”
“With us having a full squad, it does give us a bit of flexibility, but certainly these players are prepared to play three games a week.”
Brisbane’s quick climb to within striking distance of reclaiming top spot for the first time since mid-December has reaffirmed the side’s never-say-die commitment, but Postecoglou claimed the premiership was still in the hands of the Mariners and that his side could only look to sustain pressure and make sure they held second.
“We’ve had a good few weeks… I guess it’s another indicator that you should never give up.
“From our point of view, we’ve hit a good patch of form and the results have been good, but we’re not quite there yet.”
“Until your destiny is in your own hands, you’ve just got to keep making sure the position you’ve got is secured, and for us at the moment that’s second spot.”
“Central Coast still have first spot in their hands, so they’ve got control of their destiny, so all we can do is control ours; if we win the next four games, we’ll definitely finish second.”
