Central Coast midfielder Matthew Osman believes his side can cover the loss of Mile Jedinak and remain on track for a finals berth in the final three rounds of the season.
Jedinak played his last match for the Mariners in the 1-0 win over Perth Glory last Wednesday, before venturing off to Europe to play for Turkish Super Lig side Genclerbirligi.
“It will be hard to cover him, but I’m sure someone will come in and cover him and fill the role and do a fantastic job,” Osman said.
“We’ve got a really good squad so someone will come in and do a good job for us, but we’re definitely gonna miss him and we wish him all the best, he’s gonna do well over there and now it’s up to us to continue on and challenge for things.”
Central Coast is currently in third position on the table, but is only three points ahead of Wellington in fifth place and Osman knows how important the victory over Perth was last round.
“Perth were thereabouts and it was a good win for us on New Year’s Eve and it gave us a bit of a buffer between them and Wellington, so it was a very important three points,” he said.
Osman is one of a handful of players confirmed to have signed for Hyundai A-League new boys Gold Coast United for the 2009/10 season, a team he will link with at the conclusion of the Mariners’ AFC Champions League group stage campaign.
The 25-year-old remains committed to his current club for the remainder of the season and will get a taste of his future derby encounters when Central Coast welcomes Queensland to Bluetongue Stadium on Saturday night.
“They’ve got a lot of pace around the park and they come at you and they work for the 90 minutes and they’re always busy, so it’s gonna be a tough opponent on the weekend and hopefully we get the three points for the first time,” he said.
“Hopefully we get that result and cement that spot in the top four, then we can look at the finals series and then get some momentum into Asia.”
Osman has been a key player for the Mariners this season, featuring in all but two of their matches, and he is relishing his role in the midfield.
“I love playing there, I’ve been playing there all year and I cherish getting a role in midfield and I’m just happy the team is performing well and we’re getting points and we’re challenging for things and hopefully we continue that,” he said.
