Melbourne City FC coach John van’t Schip is excited about what Robert Koren will bring to the club during the 2014/15 season, believing it will raise the level of his side.
Van’t Schip put Koren through his paces at the marquee’s first session since landing in Melbourne on Saturday, saying it was a good first hit-out for the new number 10.
Koren will bring a wealth of European experience to the side which is something van’t Schip believes will rub-off on the playing group as they head towards the club’s inaugural Westfield FFA Cup match and upcoming Hyundai A-League season.
“He is of course a player that should help us get to the next level and he looked very fit for the first training that we had, so hopefully he can catch up with the rest of the group very quickly,” van’t Schip said.
“He is a midfield player [and] he has attacking qualities; he can even play as a false nine but that’s not what we have him for so he is going to play as one of the advanced players in the midfield.
“We are getting players in that are team players and within that, are going to make the team stronger, so Robi Koren is a perfect example. He’s a perfect player that in the past has shown that he’s an example to have in your team as a team player.”
Asked whether Koren will feature in next week’s FFA Cup tie against Sydney FC, van’t Schip was happy to see how his marquee man would train during the week before making a decision.
“We have to see how it develops in the coming week and then we can consider if he is ready or not,” van’t Schip said.
“We have to be careful of course and learn from the past with Orlando [Engelaar] so I think that it’s important that he shows he is fit because he has to be fit to make a difference on the pitch and that’s what we’ll look at.”
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