The next instalment of the successful Bundesliga show will be making his brief appearance next Saturday when Gold Coast United takes on the Newcastle Jets. German midfielder Peter Perchtold dons the blue and gold as he fills in for our captain for the rest of this season.
This brings me to United's Fury.
As a fan of all things A-League I too cringe at the Fury's situation, the team on the brink and its hands tied by the FFA to the possibility of signing the next David Williams. Then I look at my team who have made no announcements or signings past the end of the finals series this year and as a fan the mind starts asking why.
Why did we let Zenon Carravella go?
Why did we seemingly lose Bas Van den Brink?
Why is Smeltz only on a contract to see out this year?
With the tumultuous short history of this club, it is easy to start thinking there are no plans for the future or worse the seasons end will be THE end.... It is a horrible feeling and it is the weight off our collective shoulders that our new German friend has alleviated for us.
From what was supposed to be a short term fix to replace Culina has now expanded into a full blown 2.5 year contract, and as such has finally shown the fans that United are here to stay. It is a shame that these sorts of things cannot be made clearer or the intentions relayed to the core supporters.
A lesson to all clubs is to keep the fans in the loop. Don't let them start speculating and sinking into doom and gloom because it can happen very quickly. I'm not going to make any great connections with crowds, but if your core group are talking about the mystery surrounding the lack of signings for the clubs future, do you expect maybe some of those disenfranchised fans may not turn up thinking the team will be gone by the end of summer?
Before we look too far into the future we still have to stake our claim on this year and barring a Brisbane capitulation it leaves second spot hotly contested and it will be a real race. Couple that with games against each of our top four contenders and a certain piece of destiny rests in our own hands.
The only question is, can we grasp it?
Seeing Culina injured during Australia's draw with South Korea, and it seems that Miron will now never get the chance to field his strongest side. That statement in it self is amazing seeing as we sit in fourth place comfortably with a few games in hand on those above and below us. So we march on and hope to see some Bundesliga style magic that Thomas Broich hands out on a regular basis down on the glitter strip, and with Smeltz back in the hunt for goals it could be a very lively end to this season.
