Brisbane Roar boss, Ruben Zadkovich says his sides full focus is climbing the Isuzu UTE A-League ladder ahead of Friday’s Round 18 clash against Western United at Suncorp Stadium.
Zadkovich will take charge of his fourth match at the helm on Friday and looks to continue his unbeaten start at Suncorp having taken a draw against league leaders Wellington Phoenix and stunning 5-1 win over defending Premiers, Melbourne City from his two home matches so far.
Roar start the weekend in eighth position on the A-League ladder on 21 points, four shy of the competition’s top six with nine rounds left to play of the 2023/24 regular season.
Western United who suffered a 2-1 defeat against Melbourne Victory on Tuesday night are bottom of the league with just eleven points to their name this season.
Speaking to the media ahead of Friday’s match Zadkovich said he was hungry to harness that Queensland spirit as his side look to push towards to the top end of the A-League ladder.
“Having been a player at opposition teams in the early parts of the A-League – Sydney FC and Newcastle Jets, I remember coming to Brisbane, I still call it Lang Park, the old Lang Park special,” Zadkovich said.
“It’s a special arena in a lot of in different sporting codes but even in football, that Ange (Postecoglou) era and players like Jacky (Hingert) that were a part of that.
“It was amazing to witness from the outside and I imagine it would have been a pretty special place to be when it was happening and the stadium was full of Queensland fans.
“We want to work towards bringing back those type of days and I know how difficult that is at the moment, it’s been a tricky period for Brisbane over the last few years but you know the only way is forward and it starts with small improvements and trying to get our environment right.”
Friday’s match kicks off at 6:45pm at Suncorp Stadium and will be broadcast live on Paramount+.
MATCH DETAILS
Isuzu UTE A-League Men 2023/24 – Round 18: Brisbane Roar v Western United
Suncorp Stadium, Milton
Friday, 23 February (6:45pm KO)
TICKETS
