Marquee winger Mile Sterjovski believes Perth Glory’s vastly improved form means they should be aiming for a top three finish on the Hyundai A-League ladder.
Marquee winger Mile Sterjovski believes Perth Glory’s vastly improved form means they should be aiming for a top three finish on the Hyundai A-League ladder.
The Glory are unbeaten in their past six matches, which has seen them climb to fifth spot and move five points clear of the seventh-placed Victory with just nine games left in the season.
Their impressive run has also seen them move from near the bottom of the ladder to just four points outside the top two.
Sterjovski said there was no reason to believe their climb up the ladder couldn’t continue, starting with a win against Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium on Sunday.
“We’re sitting fifth on the table now and we’re only a few points from third so if we can keep going like this and keep winning games, we can finish in the top three easily I think,” he said.
“We’re on a pretty good roll and I think it’s important we keep focused and keep working hard to make sure it continues.”
“I think if we win on the weekend it puts us eight points clear of Adelaide and getting the wins at this stage of the season is very important.”
A top four finish would guarantee the Glory their first home final since the creation of the A-League, with their only other post-season action an away penalty shootout semi-final loss to Wellington in 2009-10.
With lofty ambitions, the former Socceroos attacker admitted taking a point from the United game might not be a satisfactory outcome.
“We know it’s not going to be an easy game there, they’re a good team and they’ve got great support behind them,” Sterjovski said.
“But at the same time we want to go there for a win. We work hard towards that and if we get a draw we’ll settle for it, but we’re really determined and we want to get a win.”
“In the last four or five weeks we’ve been doing really well, even away from home, and we want to continue that.”
Sterjovski has been one of several Glory players to step up in recent weeks and has been integral to the club’s resurgence, coming back from a period at the start of the season where he was banished to the National Youth League.
“As long as I kept working hard I knew my opportunities would come, as they did, and I’m grateful things have been going well for me,” he said.
