Wanderers coach Markus Babbel upset about Olyroos call ups
Wanderers coach Markus Babbel will be missing two key youngsters for his side’s clash with Brisbane after they were called up for the Olyroos. And he’s not happy about it.
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Western Sydney coach Markus Babbel claims he is being punished for playing youngsters as two of his key men are whisked away on Olyroos duty for the AFC U-23 Championships campaign in Thailand.
Babbel has a selection headache for Wednesday night’s match against Brisbane Roar with Keanu Baccus and Tass Mourdoukoutas away with the Olyroos for the tournament which kicks off next week while Swiss enforcer Pirmin Schwegler copped a one match ban after picking up his fifth yellow card last week.
It’s just the thing the German coach didn’t need after winning his first match in seven weeks against Adelaide.
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“It’s not good for Australian football,” said Babbel. “It’s normal that [Graham] Arnold is taking the best young players. It’s not Arnold’s fault, I don’t understand why there is no international window.
“We do something good for the league and then they take our best players. It’s not only for us it’s for all the teams as well.
“Sydney FC only play with adults, there are no young players in the starting line-up. I understand every team that wants to win the title, they say ‘no I don’t choose young ones’.
“You get punished for doing good with young ones.”
Babbel faces losing his two youngsters for up to three matches next month and it will be a new look midfield for their home match tomorrow night against Roar.
The likely candidates to replace the missing trio include academy graduates Nick Sullivan and Kosta Grozos. Nicolai Muller may return to a central position but there will be a temptation to keep him on the wing after his two-goal performance last week.
If it’s any respite for Babbel, he’s facing Robbie Fowler’s Roar who are equal on points with bottom side Newcastle, with four points from their past five matches and without an away win this season.
Despite the pressures and supposed downfalls that come with playing young players, Babbel says the club will still stay true to its youth production philosophies.
“Our philosophy is that we want to bring young players from our academy into the first team.
“It’s tough. It is like it is. there is a problem and we have to find a solution.”
Originally published as Wanderers coach Markus Babbel upset about Olyroos call ups
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