Adam Taggart is focused on continuing his rich vein of goal-scoring form with Brisbane Roar rather than a potential Caltex Socceroos re-call.
Taggart has made a superb start to his time with the Roar, scoring five goals in the opening five games, including a brace in Saturday night’s 2-0 win over Melbourne City.
A consistent scorer in the Hyundai A-League in recent years, the 25-year-old is sure to keep turning heads if he continues the prolific form in which he has started this campaign.
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Taggart, who has seven caps for the Caltex Socceroos, hasn’t featured for the national team since the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
While there is always speculation linking players who hit red-hot form in the Hyundai A-League with a spot in the Caltex Socceroos squad, Taggart reaffirmed that his sole focus is on repaying the faith shown in him by the Roar.
“You need to focus on the right things and that’s performing for Brisbane Roar. I’m here every day and I’m pushing as hard as I can every day to be the best player I can be,” Taggart told reporters on Tuesday.
“To get into the squad and start getting back into the Socceroos you need to make sure you’re performing every single week, it can’t just be one good game here and there and one goal here and there.
“I’m not going to be one of those people that says ‘I should be in the Socceroos’ because I don’t agree with that. The squad deserves a lot more respect than that.
“I’ll be working hard every single day and pushing as hard as I can but it’s for the right reasons, to be performing as best as I can for Brisbane Roar.
“They are the ones that brought me here and showed the faith in me.”
Asked if there had been any contact with Caltex Socceroos boss Graham Arnold, Taggart said: “No I haven’t spoken to Arnie. I wouldn’t necessarily expect to either.
“It’s only a couple of games into the season. I personally believe if you are going to get back into a national side you have to do a lot to get in there and you need to be performing on a consistent basis.
“In terms of the Socceroos it’s not something you can necessarily control, the only thing you control is working hard every day and just doing the best you can every single week.”
Taggart has certainly repaid Roar’s faith in him in spades over the first five weeks of the season.
After an injury-plagued last few years, the former Fulham striker believes he’s “probably the fittest he’s ever been”, which is a key reason behind his excellent start to the campaign.
Taggart is benefitting from working under former Caltex Socceroos striker John Aloisi, while his combination with the likes of Eric Bautheac, Alex Lopez and Tobias Mikkelsen is looking stronger every week.
“And I still think there is a lot more to come,” said Taggart, who was the Hyundai A-League’s Golden Boot winner in 2014.
“We know we’ve probably only shown glimpses of what we can do but there’s still so much room to improve.
“You see those things in training and parts throughout a game but I think we have so much more to offer. As good as it is to get a win under our belt, it’s important to make sure we keep pushing.”
Sixth-placed Roar travels to Coopers Stadium on Friday night to take on FFA Cup winners Adelaide United.
A win over Marco Kurz’s side would see Roar leapfrog the Reds on the ladder.
You can tune in to FOX SPORTS 505 to catch the Friday night fixture, which kicks off at 7.50pm (AEDT). You can also stream the match on the MyFootball Live App, Live Fast and Data Free for Telstra mobile customers.
SEE TAGGART’S SECOND GOAL AGAINST CITY BELOW
https://players.brightcove.net/5519514571001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5971017265001
