There’s nothing our boys love more than playing in front of our fans and Great Dane Thomas Kristensen is looking forward to returning to Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
Saturday’s clash against Melbourne City will be the Roar’s first home game in almost a month after back-to-back away trips to Perth and Mudgee.
Brisbane will be looking for its first win of the campaign while City will be eyeing consecutive victories in a contest that Kristensen says always has a bit of feeling.
“It was a good experience in Mudgee, but we love playing at home at Suncorp Stadium,” Kristensen said.
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“I enjoy playing against City – they’re always good games. I’ve only been here for three seasons, but there’s always a bit more feeling in those games.
“They’ll also be looking to come to Brisbane and build on their start to the season so it will be a good game.”
Both sides enter the clash on the back of a two-week rest following last weekend’s international break.
A slow start against the Wanderers a fortnight ago meant the Roar had to fight hard for a point in Mudgee, but the side’s resilience to fight from 2-0 down has instilled belief ahead of Saturday’s Round 5 contest.
“It takes a lot of character to come back from that. Even though we only have three points [for the season], we went into the international break on a positive note,” Kristensen continued.
“If you look at the process, we’re on the right track. It’s small details that will turn it in our favour so we need to keep working hard on the training pitch.”
That hard work has become more important than ever for each individual player with the Roar’s depth meaning there is strong competition for each position.
Joining Kristensen in midfield in the opening matches this campaign has been Spanish import Alex Lopez, who has made a great impact in his early days in Brisbane.
“The Boss (John Aloisi) has to make decisions every game, and that’s not just in midfield, but in every position,” Kristensen said.
“Alex has come in and done brilliantly. I always want to be the guy dictating play but now he wants to have the ball all the time too, and you can see his quality.
“He’s been great, he’s played at a high level and his English isn’t bad which also helps.”
After injury curtailed his 2017-18 campaign, and he didn’t feature until Round 11, the Dane is hoping to continue his strong start to the new season.
“Last season I didn’t get to play my first game until December, and as a foreigner, you want to be able to contribute, and I wasn’t able to do that at the start of last season.
“I had a good pre-season this year, I’ve played every minute so far, so hopefully my body stays in shape and I stay fit.”
MATCH DETAILS
Hyundai A-League Round 5: Brisbane Roar v Melbourne City
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Saturday, 24 November (6:50pm KO)
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