Glory star Mile Sterjovski is almost certain to take part in Perth’s crunch match against Melbourne at ME Bank Stadium, rating himself a 90 percent chance of returning to action on Sunday.
Glory star Mile Sterjovski is almost certain to take part in Perth-s crunch match against Melbourne at ME Bank Stadium, rating himself a 90 percent chance of returning to action on Sunday.
Sterjovski missed Glory-s past two games on the road with an ankle injury but has made steady progress in his recovery and trained solidly with team mates today.
Scans on the injury, sustained in Perth-s 1-0 win against Adelaide in round 10, cleared him of any significant damage but he hadn-t been able to test it fully until this week.
“It-s definitely better than it was last week,” Sterjovski said.
“I don-t know exactly what it was. It-s pretty bizarre. I thought I was going to be fine for the game against North Queensland (last Saturday) but after the final training session I pulled up a bit sore. We didn-t want to risk it and cause any further damage so that-s why I-ve rested it until now.
“The way I-m feeling I-d say I-m about a 90% chance of playing, I-ve got about four or five days to give it a good test so we-ll see how it goes. I-m pretty confident that it-s going to be ok,” said Sterjovski.
Sterjovski-s inclusion will be a big boost for Perth-s attack, the Socceroo hitting the back of the net three times this season himself, while also setting-up plenty more for strike partner Branko Jelic who scored a double in Perth-s round four win against the Victory.
Perth has an impressive record against Melbourne at ME Bank Stadium, claiming the scalp of the reigning champions in their previous four outings at the ground, however Sterjovski says the players won-t be banking on statistical advantages come Sunday.
“Melbourne is always going to be a difficult team to play. They-ve been pretty consistent since the competition started,” he said.
“We-re not expecting an easy game.
“Even though we have a pretty good record against them in Perth it will be tough but at the same time we-re confident we can get the result.”
Getting back to full fitness has taken on added importance for Sterjovski who revealed he missed an opportunity to join the Socceroos camp in Melbourne recently after sustaining the leg injury.
“Pim asked me to come into the camp on the Sunday, but unfortunately I was injured after the Adelaide game on the Friday night and couldn-t make it.
“That was the most disappointing thing for me because it might have given me a chance to play but the World Cup is still a long time away and I-ve got plenty of time to make it into the squad.
“The same thing happened to me last time (2006 World Cup) and I ended up making the team in the final selection so I-m not too worried at the moment. The most important thing is to keep playing regularly, play well and to win games.”
