Western Sydney Wanderers fans will get a first look at new recruit Kwame Yeboah on Tuesday night, with the speedy attacker set to feature in the must-win clash against Wellington Phoenix.
And the former Brisbane Roar flyer revealed a personal call from Wanderers boss Markus Babbel convinced him to swap Germany for Western Sydney.
Elsewhere, a Sydney FC veteran is showing no signs of slowing down, while Glory produced a stunning fightback to impress coach Tony Popovic.
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It’s all in another installment of Hyundai A-League Paper Talk!
Babbel’s phone call sparks Yeboah homecoming
Kwame Yeboah had plenty of potential suitors in the Hyundai A-League when he decided he’d had enough of playing in Germany.
The 24-year-old’s contract with third division club Fortuna Koln was terminated last month, with the likes of Adelaide United, Brisbane Roar and Sydney FC all interested in luring the winger.
But it was the Wanderers who snared his signature on an 18-month deal for one simple reason.
“There were talks with a few clubs but Markus called me personally himself and he was the only coach to do that – not with my agents,” Yeboah told AAP.
“For a coach to call me personally and talk to me properly, that’s where I got my best feeling from. That’s how I made my decision.”
‘Lucky he didn’t retire!’: Corica hopes to convince hat-trick hero Brosque to stay on again
Steve Corica says Sydney FC are fortunate to have Alex Brosque among their ranks after the striker revealed he came close to retiring last season.
Brosque, 35, was set to hang up the boots at the end of the Hyundai A-League 2017/18 campaign but was convinced by new Sky Blues boss Corica to stay on.
Now, after Brosque registered his maiden Hyundai A-League hat-trick against Central Coast Mariners on Friday night, Corica hopes the veteran forward will extend his stay at the Harbour City.
“Lucky he didn’t (retire). When I spoke to him and I knew I had the job, we really wanted to use him off the bench,” Corica said.
“But with Trent (Buhagiar) getting injured, and we haven’t replaced him yet with another striker, he seems to have taken all the brunt up front with Adam (Le Fondre).
“He’s doing a great job and I’m very pleased for him that he’s obviously stayed on for another year, maybe convince him to stay one more year off the bench next year.”
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Popovic delighted with response after ‘anxious’ two-goal deficit
Tony Popovic hailed Perth Glory’s second-half comeback in Sunday night’s Hyundai A-League win over Brisbane Roar as a big test of his side’s character.
Glory entered the interval ‘anxious’ after Adam Taggart’s opening half double but mustered a sterling second-half response and blew Roar away with three goals in the final eight minutes of regulation time.
“Once we conceded the second goal we started to get anxious,” he told Central Western Daily.
“The talk at halftime was ‘trust our game and believe in ourselves’ and that we could come back into the match – that was it, the players did the rest.
“When you are down 2-0, to show that character, to come back and score four goals away from home – we are delighted.”
Popovic and Glory are now preparing for a huge clash against third-placed Sydney FC this Wednesday evening.
The match looms as a potentially decisive one in the Premiership race, and will be eager to exact revenge on the Sky Blues for their 2-1 loss last month.
“We are really excited about Wednesday’s game against Sydney FC in front of our home fans,” Popovic continued.
“It’s a short turnaround but I am sure our players will be ready for Wednesday.
“I think everyone at Perth Glory should be excited about Sydney FC coming to us on Wednesday night.”
