Mulvey had been given the job on an interim basis in December and, despite not producing markedly improved results from his predecessor Rado Vidosic, has now been entrusted with the position for the next two seasons.

The decision comes at an unusual time, with the club just eliminated from the Asian Champions League at the first hurdle, losing on penalties to Buriram United in a one-off playoff in Thailand on Wednesday.

Mulvey told media on arrival at Brisbane airport from Thailand that his appointment to the full-time role had not come as a surprise, despite the result against Buriram.

"I'm thrilled. Brisbane is my home town and to be given the opportunity to build some momentum and get the club back to where it belongs, is a great feeling for me," Mulvey said.

"What I ask is that I'm judged in 12 months time with regards to a full pre-season, settling of my own squad, and then moving forward.

"There will be changes through the playing squad. That's for the future. Right now we've got to give these players the best opportunity to do the best they can."

Asked if he had been concerned about his future at the club after Brisbane lost two crucial encounters in the past week, to Buriram and Sydney FC, Mulvey said he was never worried.

"For my future? No. My future never came into it," he said. "It really isn't about me, it's about the club. And if I can bring some qualities to the club that will help it improve, then that's great.

"I was extremely disappointed (with the shoot-out loss to Buriram). It's a terrible way to lose a game. We do want to compete in Asia at the very top level.

"But if I'm truthful about the whole thing, we're probably not equipped well enough to compete deep into the tournament this year in terms of our depth.

"While we're very, very disappointed, we know we've come back to the A-League, which is equally important to us and we want to be aiming towards getting to the finals from now on."

Roar general manager Sean Dobson said the decision to hand Mulvey the coaching job on a permanent basis had little to do with recent results.

"There's two ways to look at it," Dobson said.

"It's always nice to announce something like this off the back of a win, but if you actually understood what he's achieved behind the scenes, in the dressing rooms, the way he's scouted players, what he's doing in terms of bringing in leadership structure and actually providing a really, really strong vision for the club, there's a lot of good work there, and the owners felt it was time to bring that stability to the group."