Perth Glory look set to hit the ground running in the upcoming transfer window as talk of player arrivals and departures swirled around HBF Park on Tuesday night.
Glory lost 2-1 to Western Sydney Wanderers in Tuesday’s Isuzu UTE A-League clash; winger Jarrod Carluccio was a notable absentee from the Perth squad, having played from the start in Saturday’s win over Auckland FC, and post-game, Glory head coach David Zdrilic confirmed the 23-year-old is set to depart the club in the upcoming transfer window.
“Jarrod’s going to be moving on,” Zdrilic said post-game. “That news will come out soon.
“But generally, for me it was more important about the guys that we’re going to get in… the squad is building, but it would’ve been nice to get another result – especially off the back of the last result we had at home.”
TRANSFER WINDOW: Everything you need to know about the Isuzu UTE A-League January transfer window open
YOUR CLUB’S INS/OUTS: Isuzu UTE A-League 2024-25 mid-season Transfer Centre
The Isuzu UTE A-league transfer window is set to open on Thursday, January 16 and won’t close until Wednesday, February 12.
Carluccio is set to be the sixth player to depart Perth Glory since the start of the 2024-25 season, along with Mustafa Amini, Cristian Caiceido, Luis Canga, Luke Bodnar and Jacob Muir.
TRANSFER WINDOW: Everything you need to know about the Isuzu UTE A-League January transfer window open
YOUR CLUB’S INS/OUTS: Isuzu UTE A-League 2024-25 mid-season Transfer Centre
But come Thursday and the opening of the transfer window, Glory are expected to announce several new signings to bolster the squad heading into the second half of the campaign.
Former Western United winger Lachlan Wales is among the players who has been strongly linked to the club, and was sighted at HBF Park on Network 10’s telecast of Glory’s loss to Western Sydney on Tuesday night.
When asked to comment on Wales’ attendance on Tuesday night, Zdrilic refrained from discussing any specific incoming transfers – but noted reinforcements will come through the doors at an important time for a club seeking rapid improvement on the field after a poor start to the 2024-25 season.
“We’ve definitely got signings, but we can’t announce anything right now,” Zdrilic said.
“I think what’s important is, we’ve played 13 or 14 games now and there’s a lot of things that were happening behind (the scenes) to fix the mentality, fix the culture. What’s exciting is it’s coming alive more now, it would’ve been really good to get back-to-back wins or at least a result tonight but generally I think we’ve seen improvements.
“But we need extra quality. Look at the front four of Wanderers, and then they bring another two (off the bench) – and then another striker. We just need a little bit more to be able to be competitive in every game. So that’s what we’re looking at.”
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