The Tackle: Ross Aloisi’s exit as Brisbane Roar coach exposes A-League’s big money problem
It’s hard to blame Ross Aloisi for leaving Brisbane Roar to join Kevin Muscat at Chinese club Shanghai Port – and that’s where the biggest problem lies.
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Robbie Slater and Marco Monteverde run their rule over the latest A-League action.
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ALOISI MAKES RIGHT CHOICE
It’s hard to blame Ross Aloisi for leaving Brisbane Roar to join Kevin Muscat at Chinese club Shanghai Port.
While Aloisi is giving up a head coaching role he so dearly wanted to return to being an assistant coach, the chance to further develop as a mentor at the reigning Chinese Super League champions was an offer too good to refuse.
And not just for financial reasons, although the money Aloisi will get in China as an assistant is significantly more than he was getting at Roar.
The chance to again team with Muscat can’t be under-estimated.
Muscat is extremely highly regarded in Asia, where he has already won a Japanese title with Yokohama F. Marinos.
Aloisi was part of that success, and further glory in China with Muscat will lead to head coaching opportunities for the now ex-Roar mentor.
It’s understood that Aloisi turned down a head coach role with a Japanese second division club to again link with Muscat, so he has already made an impression in Asia.
That was helped by the attacking style of football the Roar played during Aloisi’s short tenure.
Brisbane’s players loved working under Aloisi and will sorely miss him.
Unfortunately, Aloisi’s football relationship with the club’s chief operations officer Zac Anderson, also the club’s head of recruitment, wasn’t as rosy.
The pair butted heads over player retention and recruitment.
Aloisi – who was appointed by the club’s previous general manager Ante Kovacevic – never felt he had the full support of Anderson.
Aloisi’s relationship with Roar chief executive officer Kaz Patafta was better. Aloisi believed he had the backing of Patafta.
Patafta made the wise decision of appointing Luc Trani as Brisbane’s head coach for the rest of the season.
While the players will be sad to lose Aloisi, they also respect Trani for the work he did as Aloisi’s assistant and will appreciate the chance to continue with the same style of football.
It’s a great chance for Trani, who has made his name as an assistant coach at a host of clubs, to show he’s capable of being the man in charge.
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COACHING CONTENDERS
Despite Trani being appointed until the end of the Roar’s 2023-24 campaign, there is likely to be a host of coaches interested in the Brisbane job should it become available next season.
Three that spring to mind, and who are all interested in the job, are a trio of ex-Brisbane players - Stuart Maclaren, Karl Dodd and Scott McDonald.
Maclaren, 48, is currently in charge of Celtic’s under-18 team and has chalked up plenty of coaching experience since returning to the United Kingdom almost 13 years ago.
Dodd is currently coaching NPL club Brisbane City, and was previously in charge of the Guam national team and a part of the coaching staff at the Newcastle Jets.
Former Celtic, Middlesbrough and Socceroos striker McDonald has the runs on the board at NPL level, having led the Gold Coast Knights to this year’s Queensland premiership-championship double.
Another coach who might have been interested in the gig had he not just been appointed to guide the new Auckland A-League franchise was former Sydney FC mentor, Queenslander Steve Corica.
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GLORY AT LAST
The best way for crowds to lift is for home teams to win, and doing it in dramatic style, as Perth did in beating Macarthur 3-2 at HBF Park after trailing 2-0 at half-time, also helps.
David Williams’ late winner for the hosts was one of the highlights of the round.
It certainly excited the crowd of 5163, and let’s hope it leads to close to double that attendance when the Glory play at home next on January 6 against Melbourne Victory.
The Glory’s problems on and off the field have been well publicised, but perhaps their fighting weekend win will kick-start their season.
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SYDNEY STRIVING FOR CONSISTENCY
The one thing you can say about Sydney FC is that when they do score goals, they come in abundance.
The Sky Blues have only scored in three of their nine A-League games this season, but in those three matches, they are averaging four goals a game.
Their 4-2 weekend win over Western United again emphasised that when winger Joe Lolley fires, Sydney win.
Englishman Lolley scored two great goals in a win that the Sky Blues deserved.
What Talay must now demand is consistency if the Sydneysiders are to play finals football this season.
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DOUR DERBY
It’s a shame the weekend Melbourne derby didn’t rise to an occasion that attracted more than 25,000 people to AAMI Park.
But that can happen in football, particularly in a tense derby.
The 0-0 draw was a fair result, and of the two coaches, Melbourne Victory’s Tony Popovic would have been the happier, with his side maintaining its unbeaten A-League record this season.
Credit must also go to the A-League’s best referee, Alireza Faghani, who let the game flow but also showed who was boss when he needed to.
Despite Melbourne City’s protests, Faghani was correct to rule striker Jamie Maclaren had fouled Victory veteran Leigh Broxham before slotting the ball in the back of the net for what would have been a late winner.
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RUEFUL RUDAN
The sight of a disbelieving Marko Rudan sitting on the bench all by himself after his Western Sydney Wanderers team lost 2-0 to Wellington Phoenix on Saturday was telling.
The Wanderers should have been well ahead before the Phoenix scored twice in stoppage time to secure all three points.
Losing to a club he once coached also wouldn’t have pleased Rudan.
However, full credit must go to the Phoenix. They are now three points clear at the top of the table, which is a fantastic achievement considering many tipped them to finish at the base of the ladder following the departure of previous coach Ufuk Talay.
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Team of the round (4-2-1-3): Danny Vukovic (Mariners); Tim Payne (Phoenix), Roderick Miranda (Victory), Curtis Good (Melb City), Aziz Behich (Melb City); Luke Brattan (Sydney FC), Josh Nisbet (Mariners); Marco Tulio (Mariners); Kosta Barbarouses (Phoenix), Luka Jovanovic (Adelaide Utd), Joe Lolley (Sydney FC). Coach: Mark Jackson (Mariners)
Player of the round: Joe Lolley (Sydney FC)
Originally published as The Tackle: Ross Aloisi’s exit as Brisbane Roar coach exposes A-League’s big money problem
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