The Mariners boss worked with Sterjovski as a youngster but before supporters get too excited, McKinna said wanting and having were two entirely different ball games.

"If I'm being asked would I be interested in adding Mile Sterjovski to my squad then the answer would be yes, I'd love to," he told au.fourfourtwo.com today.

However, there is no deal in the pipeline at this stage and McKinna is not even convinced that Sterjovski will head Down Under from Derby.

"I think there's quite a few things between Mile coming back (to Australia) never mind which club here," said McKinna

"I think there's interest from other countries but yes, I think he would fit in great with the club here. He's a great professional, a family man and he'd love the Central Coast."

The Mariners boss has also revealed how he tried (and failed) to persuade another returning Socceroo to join the Gosford outfit.

McKinna and Perth Glory boss Dave Mitchell both worked with Jacob Burns in the old NSL but it Mitchell who eventually succeeded in landing his man.

He added: "It must be a year ago or so that we looked at the possibility of getting Jacob Burns to come here. We talked to him but it didn't happen in the end."

The Mariners will warm up for their final Asian Champions League clash against Tianjin Teda next week with a friendly tonight against Spirit FC.

"We'll give everyone 45 minutes and then look to finish on a positive note against Tianjin. We want to break that winless run we've had before we have a little break," said McKinna.

The Mariners boss remains convinced that his team have not been too far short in the competition. He said: "We've been right in four of the contests and had one shocker."

Some supporters have vented their frustration but McKinna says fans have a right to their opinions.

He joked: "I was having lunch with a journalist today and he asked me something about that (the criticism)

"We get up and not five minutes later someone comes up, shakes me by the hand, praises what we're doing. It's funny how things are sometimes."