Emboldened by Melbourne Heart FC’s second consecutive victory, Vice-Captain Matt Thompson has revealed he already has an eye on challenging the Hyundai A-League’s best, Brisbane Roar, in three weeks time.
Emboldened by Melbourne Heart FC-s second consecutive victory, Vice-Captain Matt Thompson has revealed he already has an eye on challenging the Hyundai A-League’s best, Brisbane Roar, in three weeks time.
After kicking-off the season with back-to-back losses, Heart has undergone nothing short of a transformation over the last month, as Head Coach John van ‘t Schip issued a rallying cry to his troops urging them to break off the shackles and play without fear.
And fearless they have since been, embarking on a five-match unbeaten streak which has seen the side commence a steady climb up the Hyundai A-League table, now sitting within striking distance of the second placed Central Coast Mariners, Heart-s opponents next week.
Having made a splash in the pre-season with the signings of Fred and Mate Dugandzic, two of the team-s leading performers in the competition to date, they haven-t been alone, with fellow new recruits Curtis Good and Jonatan Germano emerging as important contributors.
Injecting significant mobility, the arrival of the aforementioned foursome have ensured van ‘t Schip-s side bears little resemblance to last season-s outfit, with the tempo of Heart-s play among the most frenetic and fast paced in the competition.
While the immediate impact of Heart-s new recruits have added a significant dimension to the team-s play, Thompson revealed he didn-t expect any less.
And he now has his sights firmly placed on the league leading Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium in three weeks time.
“At the start of the year anything less than top four would have been disappointing, because we’ve got a team to give it a real good shake,” he said.
“We haven’t played Brisbane yet and we’ve got them in three weeks and if we continue this form – and I hope their streak continues – I won’t mind taking them on.
“We haven’t lost in five weeks and we’re becoming hard to beat, we’re very good defensively.”
