Rado no one-man band

Widely credited as one of the main architects of the Roar’s back-to-back A-League titles, Postecoglou's quietly-spoken successor admits that replacing his strong-willed former boss will be a team effort, a case of democracy trumping autocracy.

To that end he will delegate more influence to his right-hand-men, the conditioning expert Ken Stead, the No 3 during Postecoglou’s imperious reign, and former Wales international Jeff Hopkins who has been brought into the fold as an assistant coach after four years with the club’s W-League team.

“In past it was always Ange’s decisions. He would listen but make the big calls alone and now we’ll make those calls - it’s more about group work than individuals,” Vidosic told The World Game.

“That’s one thing that will change from the last two years. I am strong believer that you are only as good as people you have around you.

“Ange was smart and he knew the people around him brought out the best in him and vice versa. In losing Ange to Melbourne Victory we lost an inspirational leader and I need to step up in to those shoes.

“Ange wasn’t as loud in the dressing room as some people might think but he had a way of getting his message across to the players and motivating them.

“That is something I am going to have to work on myself, because we have different types of personalities.”

Postecoglou was far more than simply a master recruiter and motivator, according to Vidosic, who added: “He is really switched on game analysis and match preparation.

“I learned a lot from him; we all did but now we are doing things differently.

“I always did a lot of game analysis, tactical preparation. Ken was responsible for conditioning and Ange oversaw everything and stepped into any area when he needed to.

“Ken is behind us being the fittest team in the A-League. It’s a unique system and gives us a great advantage on other teams. All our conditioning is done with the ball – no other A-League team does that.”

Vidosic admits some people may he waiting for him to stumble but he remains confident the club’s success will continue uninterrupted.

“People are looking at me now much more than before and that’s natural,” he added. “There are big expectations and pressure around this club.

“But the biggest pressure comes from within. But it’s not all about the coaches … it’s the players who have produced the goods up to now also and we believe we’ve added well to the squad and we will be up there challenging again.”

Vidosic is excited by the arrival of Korea Republic under-20 international striker Do Dong-hyun on a three-year deal. He admits though that the import is so good it may be hard to hold onto him for long.

Speedster Ben Halloran, from defunct Gold Coast United, is another eye-catching addition to his squad while rookie Australian under-22 striker Nick Fitzgerald, left back Corey Brown and silky midfielder George Lambadaridis are all tipped to make huge strides in 2012-2013 after cameos last season.

One player not involved will be striker Kofi Danning who has left Roar to join Belgian second division club CS Vise - a club also owned by billion-dollar Indonesian conglomerate the Bakrie Group.

Danning will undergo a medical before signing a two-year deal with the option of a third season. He joined the Roar in June last year from Sydney FC but failed to win a regular starting spot.

And there will be no change of style from the team which has set the trends over the past two A-League seasons.

“Our pressing game is very hard for other teams to deal with,” added Vidosic.

“If they are not prepared for it, it’s very hard on the day. We won’t be one of those teams dropping off to the halfway line. We will still play with a high line.

“Once you have a certain game plan, and are good at it, it’s hard to change it. And why would we?”