Head Coach John Aloisi believes his Brisbane Roar squad are ahead of where they were at this point during last pre-season.
The Hyundai A-League 2016/17 season opener against Melbourne Victory at Suncorp Stadium is just 18 days away and Aloisi is pleased with his squadās progression.
āItās been a good pre-season. We feel like weāre ahead on where we were this time in last pre-season,ā Aloisi said
āI feel weāre a lot more fluent on the ball and as a team we have improved as a defensive unit.
āItās nice when you see the progression of the group. Improving on our structures was the main thing we were looking to get out of this pre-season.ā
Following the cancellation of last weekendās match against Central Coast Mariners due to torrential rain, the Roar will play Perth Glory behind closed doors at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney tomorrow afternoon before taking on a PS4 NPL QLD Under 23 Select side on Saturday.
The two sides have previously met this pre-season in theĀ Westfield FFA Cup Round of 32 and tomorrowās match against the Glory will provide Aloisiās squadĀ with another opportunity to test themselves against Hyundai A-League opposition.
āWeāve got a good test tomorrow against Perth Glory and then we have one more pre-season match againstĀ NPL Select in Brisbane on Saturday.ā
āWe felt that we needed another game against A-League opposition. Itās good that weāll get the chance tomorrow against Perth in Sydney.ā
The squad will return home later this week ahead of their final pre-season match against a PS4 NPL QLD Select squad at QSAC on Saturday, 23 September (3pm KO). Entry is free.
Recent recruit Brett Holman is expected to play against NPL SelectĀ on Saturday. While Danish international Thomas Kristensen will play a part in the Roarās midfield in Sydney tomorrow.
āBrett [Holman] is looking good as is Thomas Kristensen.ā Aloisi said.
āThomas will play against Perth and get some minutes into the legs and add a bit of size in midfield.ā
Defending set pieces has been another key element Brisbane’s senior squad have focused on throughout pre-season and Aloisi believes his side are prepared to face a Glory team who rely heavily on set pieces in attack.
āLast year we conceded a few goals from set pieces against Perth but we almost managed to score against them from set pieces,ā Aloisi said.
āWeāve worked a lot in this pre-season on defensive set pieces and we believe we’ve improved this area of our game and can cope with a tall side like Perth.”
While the Roar will concede a height advantage to the Glory, the Roar will look to use their added mobility and incredible ground speed to their advantage.
Ā āWhen you have a smaller side, you do have mobility and thatās one of our strengths ā weāre a pretty quick side,ā Aloisi said.
āItās not easy to play against some of our players who donāt stop running and keep the opposition moving.”
With almost an entirely fit squad looking to secure their spot in the October 7 season opener, Aloisi is enjoying the competition for positions within the squad, which he believes can only benefit the playing group.
āWhat I want is competition for places so itās good to have players like Tommy Oar (above) Ā and Thomas Broich pushing each other. Itās the same in other positions and we need that competition,ā he said.
All over the pitch, thatās what I want. If you have that then the training sessions are completed at a higher intensity because the players know that they need to play well and train well to start.”