Leijer said off-field changes and coaching upheavals were only part of the problem at Victory this season.

Expectations in sporting-mad Melbourne were raised to an unrealistic level with the hyped arrival of Socceroo superstar Harry Kewell.

“Now that I’m looking back, it’s been a very difficult year for everyone. It’s been the worst year in the club’s history,” he told au.fourfourtwo.com at Tuesday’s A-League/W-League Awards.

“Harry coming on board, I suppose increased the expectations. Probably too much. The spotlight's always been big in Melbourne for Victory - but when Harry arrived that spotlight got even bigger.

"There is an expectation. The public in Victoria, they all know who Melbourne Victory is ..."

Victory missed the A-League finals this season for the third time in their history but Leijer added the most important thing for the club right now is to learn from their mistakes.

But it still hurts, he admitted. “On nights like this we used to be the ones people were talking about.

“It’s not nice. You want to be up there then leaving early to prepare for a finals game.”

The commanding defender, who missed the latter stages of the season with a hip injury adding further misery to the wretched season, remained involved with then-interim coach Jim Magilton assisting him with game day analysis.

The 26-year-old Dubbo born defender said reasons for the failures would be debated over the coming months. But now his focus is on the future.

“Unfortunately it’s been one of those years," he said. "There was a lot going on.

“Sometimes you have the good and the bad but now we have to make sure next season we’re going in the right direction and hopefully win a Premiership next year or in the next few years.

"For a club that’s had so much success, we’re extremely disappointed. It doesn’t feel right to have finished on the last day of the season proper.

"But we’re a strong club and it’d be great to get back up there and see AAMI Park full week in week out.”

And Leijer was even able to see the lighter side of the club's woes.

"I turned 26 the other day and my girlfriend asked me do I feel a year older and I said I feel ten years older," he joked. "It's been challenging though it's the best way to learn."

On Tuesday night, Leijer accepted the gong for Goal of the Season on behalf of Carlos Hernandez for the Costa Rican's rasping right foot curler at AAMI Park. It was some small win for the club on a night when it was all about Brisbane Roar and Central Coast Mariners.

Meanwhile, Victory had April off with some players undergoing operations and doing rehab work.

Victory return to their Goschs Paddock base on May 1 and will train for three weeks ahead of their glamour friendly with Olympiakos on May 20 in Melbourne.

It’s a chance to put things right to a small degree for their suffering fans.

The squad then goes on another break for three weeks before beginning the pre-season proper under, Leijer hoped, a new gaffer.

He added: “In May I think we’ll have a fair indication of what’s happening and the club’s direction which will enable the boys to go away for three weeks knowing who the coach is, this is my position at the club and what we need to do for next season.

“Hopefully… but in football nothing’s certain.”