Del Piero needs supporting cast

Del Piero scored a fabulous goal and generally played well enough to suggest that Sydney's bold and costly investment in the Italian hero will reap its reward.

Not to be outdone, Newcastle Jets' own marquee Emile Heskey also left his mark on the game with a well taken strike that paved the way for a 3-2 away victory.

Much was expected from the two foreign stars and they both delivered on an occasion that would become a red-letter day for the A-League.

While Del Piero's free kick was a very 'Italian' goal of the highest technical order, as one would expect from a Serie A master, Heskey's volley from close range was the quintessential 'English' goal scored by a powerful predator of the penalty area.

Del Piero and Heskey are past their peak but they showed that they are still quite a handful.

Yet they were not the only ones to shine on a highly entertaining night.

The Jets' other strikers Ryan Griffiths and Craig Goodwin showed that the team from the Hunter has enough offensive thrust to find the net plenty of times this season.

Griffiths scored an opportunist's goal and made the other two in a man-of-the-match performance.

Goodwin, who scored the Jets' third with a cheeky chip, gave Sydney's cumbersome defence a bath with his speed and ability to make space for himself.

Their performances would suggest that big man Heskey will not be short of good service as the season unfolds.

The same cannot be said of Del Piero, unfortunately.

After two rounds of the competition it is becoming very obvious that Del Piero is on a different planet to that of most of his teammates, who were described by La Gazzetta dello Sport's correspondent at the match as “below standard”.

He thinks quicker, he reads the game better and he sees openings most of his teammates do not realise exist.

The 37-year-old “Pinturicchio” can still play a bit too.

The level of understanding between the master and his apprentices is still in its embryonic stage but will improve as time goes by, as the Italian himself said later.

”We have improved from last week,” he said.

”We have to get to know each other more. Doing it at training is not enough but it's getting better.”

The only player in the team who is on a par with Del Piero in terms of wavelength and experience is Brett Emerton.

Coach Ian Crook could do much worse than bring Del Piero and Emerton closer to each other so together they can create some meaningful moves in the middle of the pitch.

Emerton played much better and exerted more influence on the game when he took up a right-sided midfield role in the second half, as opposed to his starting right-back role.

And with Australia midfielder Jason Culina poised to make his comeback from injury in the next few weeks, Crook might need to find ways and means of having the three stars with multiple World Cup experience running the show in the middle.

Del Piero could play in the hole just behind the two strikers and Terry McFlynn or Paul Reid could sit at the bottom of a diamond with Culina and Emerton playing wide.

Sydney needs to be more classy, creative and competitive in the vital area of midfield and guys like Del Piero, Culina and Emerton would certainly add substance to the team's play.

They would be a midfield force to be reckoned with because their class, know-how and pedigree would ensure a steady and telling service to the front men and a lion's share of possession, thus affording a greater protection to a back line that could do with a little less pressure.

Culina, who has not played a game since the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in January, won't be ready for the weekend clash with Western Sydney Wanderers.

The city's first ever A-League derby is shaping as another massive media event.

The Wanderers, particularly playmaker Aaron Mooy, have left a fairly good impression in their first two matches and would dearly love to register their first win against the Sky Blues.

Parramatta Stadium should be filled to capacity for this confrontation that has been a long time coming.

One hopes that the event will match the hype and expectation and spark a new rivalry in the A-League.

The game's importance is such that it could well change the face of football in Sydney.