Sydney FC Head Coach Steve Corica is expecting an immediate reply from his squad when they face the Central Coast Mariners at Central Coast Stadium on Saturday (kick off 5:35pm).
Having pushed last week’s #BigBlue result to the back of their mind, Corica has challenged his Sky Blues to bounce back in much they same vein as they did against Melbourne City following their FFA Cup Final result in October.
“We’ve had a good start to the season and that’s what we want to do, we want to win games,” Corica said.
“It’s another challenge for us after losing last week and how we respond to that, how the boys respond and how they come back from a loss.
“We’ve done it in the cup, we lost in the cup and we responded fantastically well in the game against City so I expect the same performance as that.
“The mood is great, the boys know they need to get on with it,” he continued.
“It’s painful to lose but we’ve got to move on and focus on the next game which is the Central Coast and it’s a must win for us.
“We’re looking forward to it and after a loss it’s good to get out there, put on a good performance and get the win.”
Corica praised his leading man Adam Le Fondre following his eighth goal in eight competitive games for the Sky Blues as he said he wasn’t fazed by the Mariners recruitment during the offseason that’s seen their squad strengthen.
“The best thing for me, he [Le Fondre] does his job as a striker,” Corica said.
“He works very hard for the team, he’s been great for the team spirit as well in the club but his job is to score goals and he’s doing that and we want that to continue.
“First and foremost is the hard work he puts in upfront, he works very hard defensively and that’s great for us, he leads by example up front and obviously he’s scoring goals as well which is great for us.
“I think they’ve brought a few Central Coast players back that have been there before which is great for the club itself,” he continued.
“They’ve improved the squad, maybe they’re not getting the right results at the moment but that’s not my concern.
“My concern is for Sydney FC and how we’re going to play and to focus really on us. It’s about us going forward and not so much on them.”
Sydney FC travel away to face the Central Coast Mariners at Central Coast Stadium in Round 6 of the Hyundai A-League (kick off 5:35pm AEDT). If you can’t get up north, tune in and don’t miss a moment of the action, #WatchWithUs LIVE on Fox Sports 505 and on the My Football Live App.
