Success makes Nix youngster a marked man
Watching Sarpreet Singh make his debut for Bayern Munich has opened Liberato Cacace’s eyes to the prospect of playing for a major European club.
But while it appears only a matter of time before Cacace follows in Singh’s footsteps and signs for an overseas club, the 19-year-old has reiterated he is in no rush to leave Wellington Phoenix.
‘‘It’s so crazy, this time last year he was playing in the A-League and now he’s playing for one of the best teams in the world,’’ Cacace said ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Western United.
‘‘It does open my eyes up to what can actually happen, but not only me but to the rest of the young Kiwis here in New Zealand. As long as we keep working hard we can do what he’s doing.’’
With the transfer window opening on January 3, Cacace could be snapped up by an overseas club as early as next week. But if nothing comes of it, then so be it.
The New Zealand international is enjoying his football under new coach Ufuk Talay and is determined to help the in-form Phoenix build on their positive start, last weekend’s draw with Sydney extending their unbeaten run to six games.
‘‘I just leave that to my agent but I’m at the club at the moment and whatever comes up comes up but I’m happy playing for this club at the moment,’’ he said.
‘‘I’ll wait and see, I leave it up my agent like I say, I’m still young and Uffie is giving me the minutes I need as a young player so I’m just going to take it week by week and keep improving and play my hardest for this team.
‘‘If nothing happens in January I’ll just play towards the end of the season and make that top six.’’
At a glance
A-League round 12, Wellington Phoenix v Western United
When, where:
Mars Stadium, Ballarat; tomorrow 7pm
Cacace is now in his third season of professional football, having made his debut under Darije Kalezic during the Phoenix’s failed 2017-18 campaign.
He has come a long way since then, now the first-choice leftback for both club and country and one of the best in his position in the A-League.
But that success has come at a cost. Cacace is now a marked man. He said it was particularly noticeable against Sydney who were specifically targeting him.
‘‘It’s a tough one, I didn’t really have that last year but you can kind of notice in this game, there were three different midfielders that came on against me and tried to shut me down and basically man-mark me.
‘‘Once the game opens up, that’s when I like to play and do my stuff but the coaches are working with me and how to work around teams trying to mark me out of the game. That’s a sign of respect as well.’’
With the score locked at 2-2, Cacace looked like he had set up the matchwinner last Saturday, driving into the box and cutting back for Ulises Davila to tap home from right in front. However,
the Mexican, who has emerged as a real star for the Phoenix, shot wide of the target with the goal begging.
‘‘Uli, he’s done so much for us this season so you can’t really blame him for that. Next week he’ll put them away.’’
Although they have banked just 12 points through the first 10 games, three fewer than last season, Cacace said there is no question the Phoenix are playing better football under Talay than they did with previous coach Mark Rudan.
‘‘We’re keeping it, we’re dominating teams and it’s a joy to watch but also to play. We’ve got such a great structure that Uffie has formed with this club – the difference between this year and last year, when we do go 1-0 down we can come back and come out on top, and that’s a big difference.
‘‘Rudes wanted us controlling teams without the ball but Uffie wants us controlling teams with the ball. It’s two different structures.’’
That clash of styles will be on display tomorrow, the Phoenix travelling to Ballarat to take on Rudan’s third-place Western United at Mars Stadium.
‘‘I think we’ve just got to keep them at bay and can’t let them score early,’’ Cacace said. ‘‘The way we’re playing at the moment . . . we’re a different team compared to when we faced them in round one and I think it’ll be a good game.’’
What: