A-League: Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold praises Western Sydney Wanderers fans

GRAHAM Arnold has declared he is happy to cop more hate and vitriol from Western Sydney fans — as long as they leave his players alone.

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GRAHAM Arnold has declared he is happy to cop more hate and vitriol from Western Sydney fans — as long as they leave his players alone.

The Sydney FC coach is preparing for Saturday night’s derby match against the Wanderers at Allianz Stadium, warning his cross-town rivals he expects the Sky Blues “to run over them”.

Arnold was the subject of a lewd and offensive banner displayed by a pocket of Western Sydney supporters during the derby last season. It led to the suspension of 14 members of the Red and Black Bloc, a hefty fine for the club and the potential disbanding of the active support group.

On Thursday he tried to kill the Wanderers fans with kindness, labelling them “fantastic” and declaring the banter is good for the game.

Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold says he is happy to cop flak from Western Sydney Wanderers fans.

“I love football and they love football. It’s good fun,” he said. “Sometimes you can cross the line, but at the end of the day I just want to win.

“The Wanderers fans bring a great atmosphere and they’re fantastic fans. Everyone wants to have great fans — they do, we do, but we have the best and they come second.

“If they want to have a go at me, as long as they leave my players alone I’m happy with that.”

For the first time during a derby match, Arnold will glance over at the Wanderers bench and not see Tony Popovic.

Instead, Wanderers interim coach Hayden Foxe will take charge and Arnold says the pressure of the derby will be unlike anything his opposite number has experienced since stepping into the role.

“It’s a totally different kettle of fish, the derby, because of the expectation from the fans,” Arnold said. “Hayden has been around long enough in football to understand what a derby is and I’m sure he’ll enjoy the occasion.

“I enjoy every one, every game. It’s great.”

Sydney have won both their games to start the season, but Arnold says his players are nowhere near their full potential.

Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers have quickly built an intense rivalry.

They conceded two goals against Wellington Phoenix last weekend, but Arnold believes that came down to fatigue rather than defensive frailty after they played in the FFA Cup midweek.

“Three games in eight days in week one is always difficult,” he said.

“We expect to combine round one’s performance of how good we were defensively with round two’s performance of how good we were attacking. We combine those two and I’m expecting a fantastic performance from us.

“I still believe we’re only functioning at 30-40 per cent of our capabilities. The good thing about last week is we got three lots of 90 minutes into our legs, so we will be much fitter than them and I expect us to run over them.

“You can already see their will in their faces and the focus in their eyes — they’re looking forward to the game.”

Polish star Adrian Mierzejewski is still the only doubt heading into the game, with Arnold willing to give him until the last minute to prove his fitness.

Originally published as A-League: Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold praises Western Sydney Wanderers fans