Melbourne Heart FC Head Coach John van ‘t Schip says the Club will continue to place great emphasis on youth during the Hyundai A-League 2011/12 season.
Melbourne Heart FC Head Coach John van ‘t Schip says the Club will continue to place great emphasis on youth during the Hyundai A-League 2011/12 season.
A key feature of Heart-s inaugural campaign in Australia-s top flight competition was van ‘t Schip-s faith in the nation-s next generation of football talent.
Drawing on his Ajax-driven philosophy, van ‘t Schip handed debuts to no fewer than six players including Victorian Premier League graduates Nick Kalmar and Adrian Zahra.
And following the departure of experienced stars John Aloisi and Josip Skoko, the Dutchman said he is likely to rely increasingly on the Club-s brood of emerging stars.
“We had a philosophy during our first season that we had to have a good mix of some experienced players and younger players,” he said.
“The experienced players really did a good job. We-re not going to be able to replace those with players of the same kind of experience.
“John Aloisi, there is no second one of him, and there is no second Josip Skoko around, so we have to look for a different kind of player, with a different kind of quality.”
Van ‘t Schip though is adamant Heart-s current crop of youngsters, including Mate Dugandzic and Curtis Good, in addition to any future recruits will be able to fill the void.
“It-s not said if you go for a different kind of quality or younger player that it-s going to weaken the team. We just have to ensure we look at which players fit in the system and suit our way of playing,” he said.
