Brisbane Roar coach Mike Mulvey says he has tried to instil a positive attitude at the club since arriving last week.
Brisbane Roar coach Mike Mulvey says he has tried to instil a positive attitude at the club since arriving last week, as he believes improving the confidence of the team will go a long way to achieving better results.
The Roar will travel to Adelaide United on Boxing Day – a match the reigning champions desperately need to win in order to start lifting themselves from second-last position on the ladder.
The former Gold Coast United gaffer also hinted that he would be looking to bring in some players in the January transfer window.
The Roar looked disjointed in the first half against Perth Glory on Friday night, but put in a much-improved second-half performance.
The team was unable to turn dominance into goals, however, something which Mulvey said he is addressing by working on the players’ self-belief.
“It’s been the message from day one; let’s be really positive about every single thing we do, all the time, on and off the field,” he said.
“I’ve got great belief in the playing staff here.
“A win is around the corner, what we would like is if it’s in the next game.
“The key is to get the first goal in a game and bring that little bit of self -confidence and confidence throughout the team, and then the slick passing will come back.”
Asked whether he would be making changes to the starting XI for the match against Adelaide, Mulvey said his priority was to find the best combination of players.
“We’ve got an excellent level of fitness, so I’m not concerned about that. It’s about finding the right balance in the team,” he said.
“Unfortunately Jack Hingert picked an injury up so he’s definitely out, Do Dong-Hyun’s still injured.
“We’ve got everybody else available so it’s a question of getting the right eleven on the park.”
Former Roar captain Craig Moore wrote during the week in his newspaper column that striker Besart Berisha needed to lift his work-rate in order for the team to improve.
Mulvey said in response to those comments that Berisha’s attitude was not in question, but he could use some extra competition for his place in the side.
“My assertion is that we need two players in every position, pushing each other for that position,” Mulvey said.
“And I don’t think that Besart has that at the moment. There’s nobody really breathing down his neck saying, ‘I’m ready to take your place’.
“He’s a very good professional, he’s got great hunger and desire, but above all he’s a winner.
Mulvey explained that he would be interested in bringing in players for several positions, including a back-up for Berisha, if they became available on the market.
“There’s priorities across the board, but we would like another striker, somebody who can come in and add that little bit of extra quality to the squad, whether it’s somebody who’s sitting on the bench, or at training putting pressure on the players as well.
“The first priority is the players here. We’re working with them on a daily basis.
“I think the squad needs a bit of a boost, needs a bit of a freshen up. Now if that player that we bring in is a striker, if we find the right one, then so be it. But I’m also looking in a couple of other positions as well.”
The Roar coach said he was not expecting an easy game against Adelaide, despite United’s 6-1 thumping at the hands of Western Sydney Wanderers on the weekend.
“It was out of character, I don’t expect that there’ll be any problems with them backing up, in terms of playing at home in front of a parochial crowd,” Mulvey said.
“I can only expect that they’re hurting a little bit. But you know what? We’re hurting just as much.”