Muscat on defensive
AS a player he was a champion defender. And yesterday morning he displayed all of those defensive qualities as coach.
Whether it is the enormity of Melbourne Victory’s Australia Day showdown with Sydney FC, the fact that he is coming up against a side and coach — Graham Arnold — he has lost to on the past five occasions, or something else entirely, Kevin Muscat refused to give anything away ahead of the AAMI Park clash.
Will James Troisi return from suspension? “We haven’t finalised the team,” Muscat said.
Will fit-again Lawrence Thomas resume as No. 1 goalkeeper? “He’s back in the mix,” he said.
Is Mark Milligan’s headspace right after his potential transfer to Saudi Arabia was blocked by the club this week? “It’s been dealt with and everything we’ve had to say was said in the (club) statement (earlier this week).
“It’s not important. What is important is tomorrow night. He’s trained well all week.”
When Victory signed Milligan in pre-season did he suspect clubs would come hunting in January, such is his pedigree? “What happened at the start of the season is not important,” Mustac said.
Will James Donachie play a part against Sydney after returning from a long-term quad injury in the youth team last week?
“He performed well in the youth team and he’s recovered very well. He’s in the mix and a chance of featuring.”
Is it good at least to have Donachie back on the eve of the Asian Champions League fixture pileup? “That’s all great, but at the moment it’s not important.”
It was clear Muscat only wanted to talk about the game against Sydney and nothing else.
But even then it was difficult to get anything past the on-edge coach.
Confident his side can win? You’d assume so. “But tomorrow night is not about us trying to beat Sydney,” he said. “It’s about us preparing or performing to a certain level. And all the focus, everything we’ve done this week, is about preparing to perform.”