Ambitious Sydney eyes Asian conquests

Sydney FC, buoyed by reaching the A-League grand final, is determined to leave its mark on Asian football as it prepares to enter the AFC Champions League for the first time in five seasons.

Sydney fc

Sydney chief executive Tony Pignata, coach Graham Arnold and chairman Scott Barlow (Getty) Source: Getty Images Asia Pacific

Sydney earned the right to play in Asia by coming second behind Melbourne Victory in the premiership and will have to survive a qualifying playoff to take part in the elite 32-team event.

The Sky Blues crashed 3-0 to Victory in the championship decider at the weekend.

However, the bad defeat should not conceal the fact that Sydney has had its best season since landing the premiership-championship in 2010, CEO Tony Pignata said.

"There is no doubt, we were really disappointed with the result of the grand final but we must put that behind us and not forget that we had a good season and we are very proud of what we have achieved this year," Pignata said.

"It is something that we can now build on next season.
"Every season our objective is to make the Champions League and now we have done it after five seasons, which is a long time away.

"We are part of the Asian confederation and a club like Sydney needs to be playing in the Champions League throughout and next season we will get that opportunity.

"We have never got out of the group stage in our previous attempts.

"We will look at our group of players in the off-season because playing in Australia and in Asia is tough.

"Graham Arnold has already said we will try to retain as many players as we can and look at strengthening the squad.

"Look what happened to other A-League clubs that had double commitments.

"We need to be prepared and well organised ... Arnold has experience of the Champions League and knows what's required (to be successful) in Asia.

"We have to make sure that we give ourselves the best opportunity to perform at our best level and if we can do that we are quite confident of getting through the group stage."

Sydney's average crowd this post-Alessandro del Piero season was 18,050 and Pignata said he would love to achieve a club record of 20,000 in 2015-2106.

"We got hit by the weather in the last few games this season yet we still managed just over 18,000," he said.

"If we play well again next season we can easily get to 20,000. That's the aim."

Australian crowds continue to be healthy in the A-League but fans generally have been reluctant to adequately support their clubs in the group stages of the Champions League.

"It is difficult to get fans to midweek games and ask them to come back on the weekend," Pignata said.

"But if we play good attractive football and win games, the fans will come, especially if we get to the pointy end of the season.

"We have to keep our momentum going and take it to next season because we need to get as many people in to cover our costs and this is an issue that we need to address."

Another issue that Sydney needs to finalise is the one relating to chief striker Marc Janko, who has yet to commit for next season.
The big Austrian is back home and won't play in Sydney's forthcoming glamour matches against Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea that will draw a combined attendance of 150,000.

Janko is preparing for his marriage as speculation mounts of a separation with the Sky Blues.

Pignata said he preferred not to add to comments made by Arnold after the grand final that the club is still waiting for Janko to make up his mind on whether to stay or go.


Share
Watch the FIFA World Cup 2026™, Tour de France, Tour de France Femmes, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España, Dakar Rally, World Athletics / ISU Championships (and more) via SBS On Demand – your free live streaming and catch-up service. Read more about Sport
Have a story or comment? Contact Us

Watch the FIFA World Cup 2026™, Tour de France, Tour de France Femmes, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España, Dakar Rally, World Athletics / ISU Championships (and more) via SBS On Demand – your free live streaming and catch-up service.
Watch nowOn Demand
Follow SBS Sport
4 min read
Published 21 May 2015 7:00am
Updated 22 May 2015 6:59pm
By Philip Micallef
Source: SBS

Share this with family and friends