A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
With the A-League season ready for kick-off, today we rank the top 10 stars
1. Keisuke Honda Age: 32. Club: Melbourne Victory A genuinely jaw-dropping signing, Victory’s new marquee brings world-class ability and huge experience after almost a century of caps for Japan, including scoring at three World Cups. A dead-ball specialist, he has skill to burn and wonderful vision. 2. Ola Toivonen
Age: 32. Club: Melbourne Victory Landing Honda was cause enough for celebration, but Victory fans were left in disbelief when Swedish striker Toivonen signed on. His last competitive action was scoring against Germany for Sweden at the World Cup, and he brings a wealth of European experience — and goals. 3. Adam le Fondre
Age: 31. Club: Sydney Diminutive but hardly lacking in confidence, le Fondre has already given the air of a natural goalscorer in the FFA Cup and preseason games. After struggling for game time at a succession of English clubs, he needs to play. Has a major act to follow in succeeding Bobo, last year’s Golden Boot winner. 4. Milos Ninkovic
Age: 33. Club: Sydney The Johnny Warren medallist two years ago — and scorer of the grand final winning penalty — Ninkovic trimmed his own sails last year to help Sydney get the most out of Adrian Mierzejewski. With the Pole having left, the early signs are that the Serb is ready to unfurl his full bag of tricks once more. 5. Siem de Jong
Age: 29. Club: Sydney A signing described as “miraculous” by the club’s technical director, de Jong should at 29 be in the prime of his European career. But a succession of sometimes bizarre injuries have left him looking for a fresh start, and Sydney will hope to benefit from the vision and trickery that won him six Dutch caps. 6. Alex Baumjohann
Age: 31. Club: Western Sydney Could the German be the playmaker the Wanderers have been seeking since Shinji Ono left? He certainly has a strong pedigree, having been seen as a coming star in German soccer in his youth. His talent earned him a move to Bayern Munich which petered out, and for the past 18 months he has been playing in Brazil. 7. Ronald Vargas
Age: 31. Club: Newcastle Jets There was a moment of skill in last year’s grand final that took the breath away, and showed how much Vargas has to offer now he is fully fit and over the horrible leg injury he suffered early last season. The Venezuelan needs to play a leading role if the Jets are to back up their outstanding campaign last season. 8. Bruno Fornaroli Age: 31. Club: Melbourne City You might not think the brilliant Uruguayan has anything left to prove, but after missing so much of the last campaign with a broken ankle Fornaroli is itching to reestablish himself as the competition’s pre-eminent goalscorer. He still managed five goals last year, and is vital to City’s hopes of winning silverware. 9. Ross McCormack
Age: 32. Club: Central Coast Having taken the A-League by storm after signing on loan for Melbourne City, McCormack vanished equally suddenly after struggling to adapt to life Down Under. Still sidelined at Aston Villa, it was a smart piece of business from the Mariners to lure him back, this time for a whole season. If he stays fit, he will score. 10. Diego Castro
Age: 36. Club: Perth Glory Glory’s Spanish maestro remains one of the most elegant players to watch in the competition, even if — entering his fourth season in WA — his powers might be waning. The big question is whether Tony Popovic’s austere style of management will allow Castro to maximise his gifts for one more season.