"Step by step" by Gerard Nus

League

The A-League is going quickly now as we are in the second month of competition. We have already played five games and the teams are starting to position themselves in the table and define their playing style and their virtues.

Brisbane Roar is leading the classification with 12 points, followed by Western Sydney with 11 points. Melbourne Heart still looking for their first win, which they are finding difficult, but they are showing that they are competitive and they are giving good feeling, above all with the matches against Melbourne Victory, Central Coast Mariners and Western Sydney Wanderers.

The next match we will play is against Sydney FC, led by Del Piero, the famous Italian Striker. This game will be played 7.30 pm.

Interesting facts

I would like to take advantage of writing this blog to tell you some interesting facts that the European supporters might find strange about Australian soccer.

The long trips and the different time tables between cities make preparation of the matches complicated. For example, there are more than 4 hours by plane between Perth and Melbourne; also there is 3 hours difference in time zone. Comparing this to the Spanish league it would be like if Barcelona played a League match against a team from Moscow (Russia) or if Chelsea played a Premier League match against a team from Dubai.

In addition, I found it curious to see interviews in the changing room during some moments of the match. It seems that in the others sports they do the same too. The television can go in to the changing room during the half time break and show images live on Fox Sport, who are televising the game.

During this break, the assistant coach can be interviewed by journalists, who try to get some information about the tactics for the second half.

Did you know that in the A-League the teams can have up to five foreign players? Or that all of the teams in the A-League have limited budgets? Which is to say that they can only spend what is permitted. This guarantees the stability of the economy of the clubs.

Did you know that every team can have 2 players which are paid higher than the agreed salaries? They are called “marquee players” and they are the marketing image of the club, also this is an elite element, which improves a lot the sporting level of the club.

Did you know that the football league is also played during the Australian summer too? For this reason, when the temperature is too hot, the coaches and referees agree a minute’s break to have a drink mid-way between both halfs of the match.

All of these details are a revelation for someone who was formed in  European football.

What is your opinion about this?