Popovic bristles at A-League pressure talk

Feb 16, 2017 - 2:37 AM Ask under-pressure Western Sydney coach Tony Popovic if this A-League season has been tough and he'll stubbornly challenge the very definition of the word.

By most standards, though, it comfortably describes the Wanderers' bind.

There's last weekend's loss to ninth-placed Central Coast and their poor record against next opponents Sydney FC.

Then there's their precarious playoffs position - sitting seventh and set for an eight-round dogfight with Newcastle, Wellington and the Mariners for sixth spot.

And unlike the Wanderers' woeful 2014-15 campaign, this one isn't offset by a historic Asian Champions League triumph, instead facing the exhausting weight of another looming ACL campaign in an extremely challenging group.

Amid all this, the Popovic front remains, the coach's refrain almost identical to that of months ago when cracks first started to show.

"Our focus is to finish up as high as we can on the table," he said on Thursday.

"If we do that, then why can't we make another grand final?"

The 43-year-old former Socceroo, highly regarded for taking the Wanderers to three grand finals in four years, has suddenly found himself, his players and club under the microscope and on the receiving end of unprecedented fan discontent.

Yet he was slightly more prickly when asked if navigating such unfamiliar territory had been hard on him personally.

"No, I wouldn't say ... it depends what you regard as tough," Popovic bristled.

"I really don't know what the question implies because it's a job I love.

"I love working at this club; I love trying to make the players better every day.

"At the moment, the results haven't been consistent enough for us. We can't deny that.

"But Saturday could be the day that it all clicks and comes together."

Popovic was hopeful the season's final Sydney derby could be the turning point his side desperately needed as the Wanderers prepared for four games in 10 days including a trip to China.

It's been 10 derbies and more than three years since the club claimed bragging rights over their harbour-city rivals, who are 11 points clear at the top with one hand already on the Premiers' Plate.

The coach, who's batted away persistent links to Gus Poyet's tenuous position as Shanghai Shenhua manager, concedes his side will come unstuck at ANZ Stadium on Saturday if their primary motivation is becoming the first team to topple Graham Arnold's undefeated Sky Blues.

But he believes it can be done, even as he hinted at changes to his starting XI with an eye to Tuesday's ACL opener against Japanese giants Urawa Reds at Campbelltown Stadium.

The main question is whether veteran striker Brendon Santalab will be reinstalled after starting on the bench against the Mariners, while January recruit Ryan Griffiths is yet to play more than three minutes.

Captain Dimas is suspended, potentially opening the door for ACL squad omission Bruno Pinatares to join Kearyn Baccus in midfield.

Source: AAP