Ange Postecoglou refuses Crystal Palace’s attempt to delay Mile Jedinak’s departure for Asian Cup
CRYSTAL Palace asked to delay Mile Jedinak’s departure to Australia for the Asian Cup, but Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou was having none of it.
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CRYSTAL Palace manager Neil Warnock made an unsuccessful 11th-hour bid to keep Mile Jedinak for the club’s New Year’s Day clash at Aston Villa.
Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou revealed that Warnock called him to ask if Jedinak’s Asian Cup mission could be delayed as the Premier League relegation battler faced a busy festive fixture list without their captain.
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Jedinak headlines a handful of players who will join the Socceroos’ training camp in Melbourne late. The squad starts its camp on Sunday.
Turkish club Bursaspor and England’s Swindon Town also asked if Aziz Behich and Massimo Luongo’s respective returns could be delayed.
Postecoglou politely declined the requests, but said there was no animosity between him and club counterparts.
“Palace were really keen. Neil Warnock made the call and he was very respectful of us,’’ Postecoglou said.
“He wanted to see whether we could be flexible, but this is too big a tournament for us and he (Jedinak) is the captain of our country.
“It wasn’t just him. Swindon were keen to hang on to Luongo.
“Bursaspor tried really hard with Behich. They’ve got a big game on New Year’s Day.
“He (Warnock) was great. All the managers, whether it was him or the Swindon manager Mark Cooper, they’ve all been very understanding. They tried, which is their right.
“Even the A-League clubs could have jumped up and down because they’ve all got games during, yet we pull them out this weekend.’’
Several of the 23-man squad will miss games now. If the Socceroos reach the semi-finals or final, many more are likely to miss matches when their seasons restart after the European winter breaks.
But Postecoglou was confident players’ status at their clubs would not be affected.
“I don’t think so. Most leagues shut down anyway, so it won’t really affect them,’’ he said.
“If you look at the experience of the World Cup, every player went back to their clubs and, if anything, developed further as a player.
“It didn’t hamper their career; it helped their careers in many respects.
“Being successful internationally won’t hamper them at club level. If anything, it might help a few of them further entrench their position at their club or get them moves to clubs where they’ll be able to make more of an impact.’’
Jedinak’s Palace hosted Southampton overnight and makes the short trip across London to fellow relegation battler Queens Park Rangers on Monday morning, before he leaves for Melbourne.
Former Melbourne Heart left back Behich has played every game for Bursaspor this season. The club has the second leg of a Turkish Cup game on January 1 that they were hoping to keep him for.
Jedinak said Palace understood his predicament.
“No time is good, but you’re going away to a big tournament to represent your country, so they understand,’’ he said.
“It’s a FIFA tournament and there’s not much they can do. It’s part and parcel of being a footballer.
“They’re not necessarily pleased, but they wish me all the best and they just have to accept it.
“The most disappointing aspect of (Palace’s) season has been inconsistency and that’s something we’ve got to rectify.
“We’ve got to go on these mini-runs and not drop points.”
Originally published as Ange Postecoglou refuses Crystal Palace’s attempt to delay Mile Jedinak’s departure for Asian Cup
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