Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou says the eagerly-anticipated friendly against Liverpool in July will give his players something to aim for as they prepare for the 2013/14 A-League season.
Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou says the eagerly-anticipated friendly against Liverpool in July will give his players something to aim for as they prepare for the 2013/14 A-League season.
Victory host English Premier League giants Liverpool at the MCG on July 24, with a sell-out expected for the biggest one-off game in A-League history.
After watching his team fall agonisingly short of a spot in last week’s grand final, Postecoglou believes the visit of Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool team will provide the Victory squad with all the motivation they need during the long pre-season ahead.
“It comes at a good time,” Postecoglou told a packed press conference on Tuesday.
“We all know the A-League off-season is quite a long one. I think supporters, players, anyone involved gets withdrawal symptoms about a month into pre-season, so the fact that we’ve got this game … the players will have the majority of May off, we’ll be back in training June 1 and we’ll have had six or seven weeks of training before the game, so it kind of fits in perfectly for us.
“(It) gives the players a little bit of a target, with the A-League season not until October it’s a challenge to keep them interested and motivated for that length of time, it’s a great opportunity for us and (as for) what we get out of it … I really just want the players to enjoy the experience of playing against world-class opposition. I’m big on that. We’re quite fortunate in that we play a game that is global.”
With superstars such as England captain Steven Gerrard and controversial Uruguay international Luis Suarez due to travel with Liverpool, Postecoglou expects his young squad to gain invaluable experience when they go up against some of the Premier League’s finest.
“A unique set of circumstances has arisen which allows our players to get on the same pitch as world-class footballers and I just want them to go out there and enjoy the experience,” he said.
“We want it to be an entertaining game, it’s going to be a sell out. We know Liverpool can play a fantastic brand of football, and I think anyone who knows Victory will know that we’re going to try and score goals ourselves, that’s the way we play, and see how we measure up.
“The most important thing is the players – some of them will be teenagers walking off the pitch at the end of the game having made the most of that experience and learned as much as they possibly can and also (we want to) give our supporters something to cheer about.
“I’m sure by the time the game comes around they’ll be looking for a game of football and they’ll be looking to raise their voice so hopefully we can give them something to cheer about during the game.”
