Football Season Guide

Lost the Grand Final against the Mariners last season, again resulting in a trophy-less season for one of Australia's biggest clubs. Boss Popovic left at the expiration of his contract after that. Former Melbourne City boss Kisnorbo has taken over. He issued the following promise for the season ahead, "Our brand of football will reflect what you have come to expect of Melbourne Victory sides. We will be bold and brave, play attacking, quick football and I will have my team ready for any challenge that stands in our way.“ - there haven't been any signs of that in their Australia Cup games. GK could be a problem, at least for the first few months of the season with mainstay Izzo having left for Randers. Veteran Socceroos shot-stopper Langerak will replace him - but only in January. Considering how much they tend to rely upon their defensive structure, this inconvenience could hurt them more than most. Barring regulars Izzo and da Silva, they've mostly cut loose deadwood/inconsistent players pre-season so that in itself isn't an issue. However, they've not set the world alight with signings either. Hamill will replace da Silva well enough, and Piscopo should be a bit of an improvement on Folami. Reec could be a good impact player but is not likely to start. It's widely whispered that this will be Fornaroli's last season, hence the arrival of Vergos. They're well-stocked in that department for the campaign ahead though. They're lacking natural flair/creativity though, for the most part. Piscopo will contribute, Velupillay has his moments, Valadon is improving etc. but only Machach and Arzani are trustworthy in that department, and the latter is already in hot water there, having had a massive bust-up with boss Kisnorbo after being dropped for an Australia Cup match. Kisnorbo said they were, "trialling alternatives" in response. Despite a lot of talk and a number of changes, it's difficult to envision that anything has actually changed for the better at this club. They don't look any more capable than before of challenging for major honours, and losing the Australian Cup against Macarthur FC pre-season was another good example of such. Likely key players - Geria, Miranda, Machach.