Wellington Phoenix (2016/17 finish: 7th)

Dario and Rado Vidosic

Surprise Player: Lewis Italiano - He has previously had two stints with Perth Glory.

Why They’ll Win: The father-son combination of assistant coach Rado Vidošić and player Dario Vidošić. The family pairing will be a massive boost for Wellington with both being able to work well together and feed off each other to get the required results. Rado is a credible assistant coach having worked with the three biggest teams in the country in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne while Dario has plenty of experience in the A-League and has represented the Socceroos on numerous occasions.

Why They’ll Lose: As far as coaching goes, the aim is to make your team the best possible and help them win. New Wellington coach Darije Kalezić’s career is the exact opposite of that. During his coaching career with six teams, the closest he’s come to winning is with De Graafschap of the Eerste Divisie where he had a winning percentage of just 44.32%. He’s also had coaching stints that have lasted just three months as well as one that went for just seven games. His coaching record means Wellington may well be fighting to avoid finishing last this season rather than competing for a first-ever championship.

Central Coast Mariners (2016/17 finish: 8th)

Mariners fans celebrate a goal

Surprise Player: Tom Glover - He is on-loan from Tottenham and is their youth goalkeeper.

Why They’ll Win: Rejected from Sydney FC after scoring no goals in 15 games, he followed up in Newcastle with just five in 26 games. But this off-season for the Central Coast, Andrew Hoole was acquired and he lit up the pre-season with his seemingly new-found ability to strike in front of goal. If the ex-Australian U23 player’s resurgence proves to be the real thing  this season he will be a massive influence in the Mariners’ chase for another championship.

Why They’ll Lose: Ben Kennedy. He didn’t feature for the Newcastle Jets at all last season yet this season could be starting only because the Central Coast’s other two goalkeepers are so young. If this proves to be the case the Mariners can wave goodbye to a finals berth this campaign and a potential championship. He is on the wrong side of 30 and doesn’t have what it takes to compete at a high level in the A-League any more. Paul Okon should rotate his young goalkeepers instead of him but barring any drastic changes or injury it appears that he’ll be starting the first game of the season.

Adelaide United (2016/17 finish: 9th)

Paul Izzo in action

Surprise Player: Paul Izzo - He has represented Australia at the U17, U20 and U23 levels.

Why They’ll Win: Belief. Despite having a very small squad available, Adelaide still advanced to the second round of the FFA Cup after an inspired 1-0 win over the Newcastle Jets. Fast forward they now have their full squad for the upcoming season and are only one win out of the FFA Cup final. Their tight-knit team resembles that of their Premiership/ Championship double winning team only two years ago. If they can play with the same mentality and confidence that their historic squad had then they might just repeat that feat.

Why They’ll Lose: Baba Diawara. A striker’s primary role is to score goals but on average for his career he has scored only 67 goals from 253 games, a poor statistic. He’ll have to change this quick smart or Adelaide could struggle massively in front of goal this season. Adelaide could still have a stellar defence but this would let them down given he’s one of their only attacking options up front and arguably the main one.

Newcastle Jets (2016/17 finish: 10th)

Wayne Brown

Surprise Player: Wayne Brown - He has played just under 60 games for the Bristol Rovers.

Why They’ll Win: Last season for Newcastle Jack Duncan helped contribute to the team having nine games where they conceded only one or fewer goals. The other player in his position in Glen Moss - a man who has made just under 30 appearances for the New Zealand national team. The goalkeeping battle between these two players means Newcastle have two starting-quality keepers on their books. This positional battle massively helps to shore up Newcastle’s defence in preparation for this season.

Why They’ll Lose: As a coach Ernie Merrick’s only been able to win with two very talented Melbourne Victory teams. With the exception of that, his trophy cabinet is empty. Combined with a winning percentage at Wellington of just 32.98% and his brief stint as the head coach of the Hong Kong national team he could finally be exposed for the average coach that he is rather than one of the best coaches in the A-League that he is considered.

 

So which Leicester will your club be at the end of the 2017/18 campaign? No matter what happens though, every club enters this upcoming season on level points and a shot, whether big or small at taking out the Championship. For Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney they are all aiming to etch themselves into Australian footballing history while the likes of Western Sydney and Wellington are aiming for maiden championships. With that in mind good luck to the nine Australian-based clubs and the one New Zealand-based club competing in the 13th season of the Hyundai A-League.