Popovic, Muscat kick off rivalry
EXACTLY a year ago, Tony Popovic had secured a 3-1 Turkish Cup win, his second win in three games with Karabukspor.
It was the same week most Karabukspor players stopped getting paid and the board was overthrown.
Popovic experienced it all in his short tenure – he was sacked seven weeks later – but no Australian has coached at a higher club level with the Turkish league sitting at 10th on the UEFA league rankings, ahead of Holland, Switzerland and Scotland.
With Graham Arnold moving onto the Socceroos, Popovic-Kevin Muscat looms as the big A-League coaching rivalry this season, kicking off tonight at AAMI Park.
Muscat has ambitions to coach abroad after a second title in five seasons at Melbourne Victory and was disappointed his ex-Socceroos teammate couldn’t succeed in Turkey.
Popovic, who surprised many with his decision to join Perth Glory after five years with Western Sydney Wanderers, declared no regrets.
“Nothing’s changed. Having a taste of Euro football and what I went through in Turkey has only enhanced my ambition to be the best coach I can be and get as high up that ladder as possible,’’ he said.
“I’ve always taken a chance as a player and coach – going to England as an assistant when the club (Crystal Palace) was in administration and had we got relegated I would’ve lasted five months, or accepting the Wanderers job as a rookie coach with four months to put a team together.
“Turkey was a huge chal-
“I was confident and don’t regret taking it”
TONY POPOVIC lenge. They’ve won one game since I left – winning once in 12 months suggests the club has problems.
“Hindsight is wonderful. You think maybe I shouldn’t have taken it. I was confident and don’t regret taking it, not one little bit. It’s part of the journey in life and football.
“I’ve spent some good time observing, reflecting, spending time with family and friends.”
Muscat has overhauled his squad and tactics in the next phase of his Victory evolution with the help of new assistant, former Villareal and Real Madrid academy coach Carlos Perez Salvachua.
“That’s been an exciting part of it (changes),’’ Muscat said.
“That’ll be an ongoing process because of the high turnover and so on. But it’s something we’re enjoying working on to make sure the style of the club won’t change.
“We still want to be attackminded and proactive and we still want control.
“It’s exciting now with different coaches so I enjoy that part of it, to see what changes Sydney will make, Popa, Markus Babbel at Western Sydney, Rudes (Mark Rudan) at Wellington.”
Popovic said Glory was aspiring to be like Victory – a club expected to challenge for a title each year. Tonight will be Glory’s first litmus test.