Melbourne Victory coach Tony Popovic faces a welcome selection headache as he looks to introduce a wave of new signings to his side in pursuit of an A-League Men finals berth.
Victory brought in four new players during the transfer window and three of them – Bruce Kamau, Connor Chapman and French defender Damien Da Silva – are in contention to feature in the away clash with Newcastle on Sunday.
Paraguayan forward Fernando Romero won’t arrive in time to link up with his new teammates against the Jets.
Popovic may be tempted to stick with the line-up that snapped a six-match winless run in last week’s 3-1 triumph over Wellington, but is bullish about what the acquisitions could offer his side.
They came as striker Nick D’Agostino departed for Norway and former Socceroos defender Matthew Spiranovic retired because of injury.
“It’s been a busy ten days or so,” Popovic told reporters on Friday.
“We’ve lost a lot of experienced players for different reasons in the last month or so.
“We needed to add to the squad, add quality to the squad, competition for the squad.
“We’re pleased with what we were able to do.”
Former Lyon defender Da Silva has had four training sessions with his new teammates and is acclimatising to Australian conditions after the European winter.
Popovic expects the 34-year-old to bring leadership qualities and experience to the squad.
“We’ve already seen that since he’s been here, in terms of his application and attitude towards training – the mentality,” Popovic said.
“He’s a player of the highest order.”
Romero has joined Victory on loan from Primera Division outfit Cerro Porteno and is the product of a year’s worth of scouting by the ALM club.
The former Paraguayan youth international has Copa Libertadores experience and could soon link up in attack with Victory’s Uruguayan-born Socceroos striker Bruno Fornaroli.
“We feel he’s an exciting player with a lot of potential,” Popovic said.
“He’s very determined to succeed here. He wants a new challenge.
“He’s young but he’s played a lot of football in the top flight so he’s accustomed to pressure and expectation.
“He wants to bring what he’s learned and showcase that here in Australia.”
Victory sit last on the ladder with 14 points, six behind sixth-placed Sydney FC with a game in hand.
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