Pim Verbeek is not far away from announcing his Socceroos squad for the World Cup and there are many who are waiting in anticipation, as star players are either injured or simply not playing.
That aside another issue that will be interesting to watch play out after the World Cup, will be the performance of those players who returned to Australia to put themselves under the nose of the national coach.
One hopes that the spur of a place in the Asia Cup squad will keep them motivated in the immediate future once a new coach is unveiled. But it does make one wonder whether the drive will be the same as it was this year, especially after ten years overseas. Not everyone has the drive of Kevin Muscat.
Which raises the issue of whether returning players of this standard should not be placed on performance based contracts.
Perth Glory, had two marquee players who to be honest returned from Europe and for various reasons hardly were seen on the park, and when they were it was hard to be fair and assess whether they had been worth the investment.
Players returning to the Hyundai A league who have played to a reasonable level in Europe and who are at the top end of an A League’s salary cap, should not have money issues in the current football climate, if they have been sensible. Therefore if they have come back to perform, rather than simply claim an early retirement fund, they would not mind a base salary with bonuses built in for goals, wins, Finals and Championships, or would they?
If the Hyundai A league is get out of the financial predicament that it finds itself in, the issue of the Marquee player and the returning high or mid profile Australian player needs to be looked at carefully, as the ultimate cost to the game is the young talent coming through.
