Socceroo backs EPL keeper to shine in A-League

Melbourne City’s Socceroo Michael Zullo has hailed the signing of EPL goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen and has a sharp response for anyone doubting the Dane’s ability to deliver at the Hyundai A-League club.

Zullo, who signed a one-year deal with City on July 14, believes the club’s latest addition will provide “massive experience” to John van ‘t Schip’s squad and is confident 39-year-old will be ready for the start of the A-League season.

“I think Sorensen is another sign of the club’s intentions and their ambition,” attacking full back Zullo told Goal Australia.

“He obviously has massive experience and I think it’s a good piece of squad management to get him under the salary cap.

“If anyone has any doubts about his fitness, they should check out what he’s been doing the past few months.”

Sorensen rode over 6,000 kilometres across the United States throughout June, July and August after bringing his Premier League career to a close in May.

Melbourne City sign EPL shot-stopper Sorensen

Speaking in the lead-up to his third A-League stint – Zullo started his career with Queensland Roar and spent the 2013-14 season on loan at Adelaide United – the 26-year-old revealed he had offers from other Australian clubs but is convinced City is the right place for him after an injury-plagued stint with Utrecht in the Eredivisie.

“It is a huge year in my career. It [choosing a club] couldn’t be purely based on money because that would be silly in the long-term, potentially,” he said.

“I feel like I’ve still got a lot of time left in my career. So I wanted to [the decision] to be the right one for me going forward, not just for right now.”

Thomas Sorensen

City provides “everything we need to be successful”, according to Zullo, who is very impressed by the club’s training base at Latrobe University in Melbourne’s north.

The 10-time Australia international is still working his way back from the anterior cruciate ligament injury that curtailed his final season with Utrecht but he is excited by what could be achieved with City.

“I think they’re also a club with massive ambition, and that’s something that usually flows onto the players and that was something I wanted to be around and hopefully reignite myself a year after coming back from injury,” he said.

Zullo is also looking forward to a “more rounded life” back in Australia and is aiming to finally complete his accounting degree, which was put on hold while he was in Netherlands.

The Queenslander concedes football sometimes became “a grind” at Utrecht but he insists he has no regrets.

“I was a child when I went to the Netherlands and I was very naïve in terms of how world football worked and where I stood in world football,” he said.

“And I think now I’m much better equipped to not just be a good player but be someone, who can continue to do so consistently for a longer period of time, and can understand the beauty of football and appreciate it while it’s good.”

Zullo added: “Probably the best I’ve produced in Australia were my first two years at Roar … just instinctively playing.

“If you want to make a difference, you have to take chances, and that’s kind of where I’m at in my head at the moment – if I want to be a player that stands out and makes a difference, I’ve got to put it on the line.”

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