Popovic was unveiled to the Perth media on Thursday morning after the club announced a three-year deal for the ex-Western Sydney mentor last Friday.

Glory were domestic champions in the final two years of the NSL but have failed to win a single trophy during the A-League era.

Across the 13 seasons of the A-League, Perth have only made the finals five times, reaching one Grand Final in 2012.

“Ultimately the decision was around the drive and desire speaking to Jacob (football operations manager Jacob Burns) and Tony (owner Tony Sage) about what they want to achieve and where they want to take the club,” Popovic said.

“That was at the forefront of my mind.

“I don’t think it was a hard sell. When I spoke to Jacob about the opportunity, I felt it’s a club that always had the potential.

“As an opposing coach, I was always looking at Perth in the back of my mind thinking there’s a lot potential here, thinking this club one day can be something special.

“Hopefully we can get (the club) on the right path to being not just successful in a one-off season, but actually challenging regularly for honours.

“That’s something that the club hasn’t had in the A-League but it certainly had it in the NSL.”

Glory were dominant during the final NSL years

Popovic declined to promise immediate success but said there would be no excuses either despite the long-term nature of the project.

He said he’d deliver a “quick and aggressive” style of play, with a pragmatic view to winning first and foremost.

One of Popovic’s first tasks will be making decisions on the playing squad, with only 11 players contracted at this point.

“(We want) good players, determined players, players that want to succeed,” he said.

“Players that want to get better across the whole range. They’re out there.

“We’ve got 11 of those already. We’ve already got a good start.”