The stage is set for the Maestro to play.
Brisbane Roar’s international marquee Thomas Broich has built a reputation on producing his best football in key situations and is poised to showcase his finest football as the Roar face a hectic and pivotal week.
The Roar play Adelaide United at Coopers Stadium tonight in Hyundai A-League Round 25 then get two shots at Suncorp Stadium next week against a shell-shocked Melbourne Victory, who were surprise 0-1 losers to Newcastle Jets last night.
Broich believes the Roar at full fitness can beat any team in the league in a must-win contest.
A month ago he prophetically warned rivals not to write off the Roar too early.
“In the past this team has proven time and again we can turn things around in one game or even when it comes to an entire season,” the two-time Johnny Warren medallist said.
Although a mid-season ankle operation has meant Broich has probably not played enough games to win a third medal this season, recent form indicates the German is surging back to his best.
Broich has provided seven assists in his past seven games.
That includes a sublime chip over the defence by Broich for Andrija Kaluderovic to score in the Roar’s 6-1 thumping of Central Coast Mariners in their last Hyundai A-League outing.
The Roar is looking to close a difficult season by picking up as many points as possible in their remaining four regular season games and sound a warning to those clubs above them on the table.
Broich’s return to full fitness and 90-minute involvement is set to power that resurgence.
When Broich has played this season, the Roar has a 43 per cent success rate. In 14 games with the playmaker in the team, the Roar has won six times.
They have lost seven of the nine games in which he was unavailable for selection.
The Roar tonight also welcomes back in-form striker Jean Carlos Solorzano, who wasn’t eligible under visa player restrictions to play in Brisbane’s mid-week AFC Champions League match against Suwon in South Korea.
With eight-goal hero Henrique out for the season following a knee reconstruction, Solorzano is the Roar’s top scorer among active players with six goals.
While he didn’t get on the scoresheet in the 6-1 romp over the Mariners, Solorzano was at his busiest best as he worked hard down the left flank – and at one stage even cleared a corner from the six-yard box.
Solorzano admits it is disappointing not to be involved in the Roar’s Champions League campaign but says it makes him even more motivated for the Hyundai A-League.
“When I get the chance to play, I just want to do the best I can for the team,” he said.
The Roar yesterday drafted Young Roar defender Lachlan Jackson into the squad.
Left fullback Shane Stefanutto, who withdrew from the Starting XI in the warm-up to Wednesday’s game in Suwon with a slight calf strain, was advised by doctors to take the shorter flight back to Brisbane rather than stay with the squad which flew from South Korea to Adelaide on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, the Young Roar’s proposed trip to India next month to play in an international tournament featuring some of the world’s best-known clubs has been postponed.
Organisers this week advised the club that factors beyond their control had forced the rescheduling of the eight-team event to late December.
A decision on whether the Young Roar will participate in the tournament at that time, which is the middle of the Foxtel National Youth League program, will be made later in the year.
