Melbourne Heart goalkeeper Clint Bolton says conjecture around the future of Simon Colosimo is a “non-issue” for the club ahead of Saturday’s season-opener against Newcastle.
Veteran Melbourne Heart goalkeeper Clint Bolton says conjecture around the future of Simon Colosimo is a “non-issue” for the club ahead of Saturday’s season-opener against Newcastle.
Heart have confirmed that other Hyundai A-League clubs have approached them to ask about the availability of the 2010 Joe Marston Medal winner after Brazilian import Fred was awarded the captaincy of the side last week.
The keeper said Colosimo would be a hard player to replace but that any innuendo surrounding his departure had not affected the team’s focus.
“I’ve been in this game long enough to know that where there-s smoke generally there-s fire,” Bolton said. “There’s not a lot of good players in general, let alone good defenders floating around that haven-t been signed,” Bolton said.
He described the decision to give Fred to captain’s armband as an “inspired” choice by captain John van ‘t Schip.
“Playing with him as a teammate it (my respect for him) has just gone to another level,” he said.
“His attitude, his professionalism on the park is first class. It-s just an example for the younger boys out there to really follow.”
Meanwhile, Bolton has declared himself a certain starter in the Heart-s season opener against Newcastle at Ausgrid Stadium on Saturday after fully recovering from shoulder surgery in February.
“The shoulder-s fine; it-s golden, it’s 100 per cent,” said Bolton.
