The Socceroos striker has hit AAMI Park at a canter, scoring in each of his first three encounters despite registering as few as 13 touches per match.

It's the sort of poacher style that can either work incredibly effectively or isolate Maclaren entirely, but the striker believes he has the experience and City have the depth to turn a running start into a prize finish.

"Trust me, when you get on a run you don't want to stop," he said. "It's important to get on the scoresheet and keep my standards high.

"I'm confident I'll score goals regularly – I'm just here to score goals.

"We've got depth and two new arrivals has been a breath of fresh air for the side. It's not easy coming from a foreign country and for Shayon Harrison it's different football, different culture and different weather but I love the way he dribbles and he's only going to get better."

While new faces arrive, treasured names depart. The announcement that former City icon Bruno Fornaroli will finally leave the club after he was frozen out of the squad by coach Warren Joyce left Maclaren with mixed emotions to match the team's mixed results.

"I respect Bruno and I respect the gaffer, there's a little rivalry because a couple of years ago me and him were scoring 20+ goals a season, but to Bruno's credit he's carried himself well," Maclaren said.

"We've just got to move forward, I look at the depth we've got and people say the way we play is all possession based but imagine if we can start transitioning that possession into solid chances and burying those chances, with being sure at the back, that's a complete squad.

"Warren knows what it takes to get to the top, he comes in with a smile every day and when you see he's at ease, you know we just need to focus on our performances.

"I know as well as he does that one win will change everything."

With his goalscoring form seemingly recovered, Maclaren took a moment to reflect on his time in Scotland while offering some choice comparisons.

"Scotland's a hard league, the pitches are fantastic and the climate - the football's different.

"You can fall back on saying that because they have promotion and relegation, when they're playing for their lives you get a different game, they sit back and you get tough challenges.

"Playing for Hibernian was great, when you get 25,000 to every home game it's brilliant, but I'm back here for the long-term and I'm going to enjoy it."