Kisnorbo stands by Arzani final omission call
Melbourne Victory coach Patrick Kisnorbo has stood by his decision to leave Daniel Arzani out of the Australia Cup final and is confident the fallout from the Socceroo’s controversial omission won’t linger.
Victory suffered a surprise 1-0 loss to an understrength Macarthur FC in Sunday night’s decider at AAMI Park, with Arzani not featuring in the match day squad at all.
Victory’s official line was Arzani was left out because he is suspended for their round-one ALM grand final rematch against Central Coast, and Kisnorbo had wanted to test players available for that game.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.The senior coach reaffirmed that rationale post-match.
“It was just my decision,” Kisnorbo said.
“It was a selection decision that I chose.
“Come round one he won’t be in the game either, because he’s suspended.
“We sort of had to be ready for that scenario and I decided to do it today.”
Arzani had to instead watch on from the stands but Kisnorbo did not think any fallout from the Socceroo’s individual disappointment would carry into the ALM season.
“We’re professional. That’ll be professional,” he said.
“End of the day, it is what it is. Again, I made the decision and I stick by my decision.”
When asked if there had been a falling out with Arzani during the week, Kisnorbo said: “No.
“The issue isn’t about Daniel, the issue is about the team - and it’s about the team tonight, not an individual.”
Kisnorbo said the performance, where Victory failed to score despite dominating general play and firing 22 shots to Macarthur’s six, was “fantastic”.
But they left Sunday night’s game empty handed and will have to pick themselves up before their October 18 season opener.
Kisnorbo was confident they would quickly move on.
“It’s just one of the things that you got to deal with,” he said.
“I’ve always thought process first, and we’ve just got to continue working hard and keep pushing.
“Because tonight, for me, showed really good signs, especially leading into the start of the season.
“So look, we can’t stop. We’ve got to keep going, we’ve got to dust ourselves off and keep pushing for round one.”
