EXCLUSIVE: Paul Agostino is looking to extend his stay with Adelaide United and insists he has never felt more motivated in his life.
The 33 year-old marquee striker is also confident that the Hindmarsh outfit can flourish this season, even without the goals of Nathan Burns and Bruce Djite.
Agostino says there is a real spring in the step at pre-season training and he is impressed with the new faces that Aurelio Vidmar has brought in.
On a personal level, the former 1860 Munich forward says just being fit for the build up to the new season is a huge relief and he hopes a solid base can help extend his spell at United for at least another year.
Agostino's current deal runs out at the end of season four and a decision on whether he pens a fresh one will depend heavily on his fortunes this time out.
He told au.fourfourtwo.com: "I had a good break in Europe but now I'm back, back into work and really looking forward to a good year.
"This time last year I'd arrived from Germany with a broken metatarsal. Then I suffered a calf muscle tear and towards the end of the season I tore a tendon off the thigh bone.
"My first goal is to get pre-season under my belt and go from there. I think you can struggle if you don't have that.
"I feel great, like I'm just starting out in the game to be honest. I'm more motivated than I've ever been. A good year will hopefully see me kick on and extend to another year here. You have to think positive."
Agostino had limited game time last year but did have a healthy goal haul in the few matches he managed to start.
He said: "I just want to start as many games as I can and I'm confident we have goals here.
"We have lost two youngsters in Bruce (Djite) and Nathan (Burns) who have developed into tremendous footballers. But credit the club for going out and looking to bring in new faces for the season.
"The Brazilian guys look good, really sharp and as for me, I've no problem about taking more (goalscoring) responsibility.
"There's the next stage of the Champions League to look forward to later but first it's about the A-League. It was a massive disappointment not making the top four last year and we want to put that right this time."
Agostino says there is a real spring in the step at pre-season training and he is impressed with the new faces that Aurelio Vidmar has brought in.
On a personal level, the former 1860 Munich forward says just being fit for the build up to the new season is a huge relief and he hopes a solid base can help extend his spell at United for at least another year.
Agostino's current deal runs out at the end of season four and a decision on whether he pens a fresh one will depend heavily on his fortunes this time out.
He told au.fourfourtwo.com: "I had a good break in Europe but now I'm back, back into work and really looking forward to a good year.
"This time last year I'd arrived from Germany with a broken metatarsal. Then I suffered a calf muscle tear and towards the end of the season I tore a tendon off the thigh bone.
"My first goal is to get pre-season under my belt and go from there. I think you can struggle if you don't have that.
"I feel great, like I'm just starting out in the game to be honest. I'm more motivated than I've ever been. A good year will hopefully see me kick on and extend to another year here. You have to think positive."
Agostino had limited game time last year but did have a healthy goal haul in the few matches he managed to start.
He said: "I just want to start as many games as I can and I'm confident we have goals here.
"We have lost two youngsters in Bruce (Djite) and Nathan (Burns) who have developed into tremendous footballers. But credit the club for going out and looking to bring in new faces for the season.
"The Brazilian guys look good, really sharp and as for me, I've no problem about taking more (goalscoring) responsibility.
"There's the next stage of the Champions League to look forward to later but first it's about the A-League. It was a massive disappointment not making the top four last year and we want to put that right this time."
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