MELBOURNE Victory coach Ange Postecoglou says it is not a matter of choosing between the best international and local candidate for the Socceroos' coaching job, but simply finding the right one.
"It's our national team, " says Postecoglou.
"I want the best man for the job."
The growing feeling inside the game’s hierarchy is that Postecoglou is the person to take the Socceroos to Brazil and, almost as importantly, to revive the national team’s flagging brand.
Football Federation Australia will hastily form a committee to compile a list of suitable candidates - both local and international - and review their credentials.
However, Postecoglou already has strong support because of his impeccable coaching credentials and, significantly, his strong and engaging media profile.
The Socceroos looked more like one of Serena Williams’ overwhelmed first-round opponents than a credible World Cup aspirant after losing to Brazil and France 6-0 6-0. That was one dispirited, disorganised thrashing too many for Holger Osieck, who was sacked.
Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou is a good chance of becoming the next Socceroos mentor.
But, beyond even the Socceroos’ World Cup performance, there is concern at FFA about how rapidly the national team is losing its lustre and the impact that might have on the game’s growth.
Tellingly, despite World Cup qualification, no naming-rights sponsor has been found to replace Qantas, which dropped its long-term deal with the Socceroos this year.
That leaves, for now, a $4 million-$5 million hole in the annual budget.
In the past, the feeling has been that FFA chairman Frank Lowy has called on his wide network of international affiliates to fill the Socceroos’ coaching vacancy.
Osieck, for example, was appointed on the strong recommendation of German great Franz Beckenbauer.
That has left some believing that Lowy will again pluck a high-profile international name to lead the Socceroos in Brazil in the hope of sparking an instant revival.
However, in what shapes as the greatest challenge so far for FFA chief executive David Gallop, the appointment seems more likely to follow a more rigorous and inclusive process.
One in which the executive’s concerns for the game’s long-term future will be balanced against the compulsion to hire a hit-and-run international who might inspire a face-saving performance in Brazil.
While Lowy remains the game’s most influential powerbroker, Gallop is believed to have played an active role in the decision to remove Osieck; one that was made even before the final whistle at Parc de Princes put the demoralised Socceroos out of their misery.
Postecoglou’s record, which includes two NSL titles with South Melbourne and two A-League titles with Brisbane Roar, is impressive.
More so given that, at Brisbane, he had success replacing ageing stars with young talent — the same challenge he would face with the Socceroos.
"I’ve always thrown in young people and they tend to surprise you,’’ Postecoglou said on Saturday.
At the same time, as his appearances as panellist on Fox Sports football coverage and the ABC’s Offsiders have shown, Postecoglou talks intelligently, warmly and engagingly about his own sport and others.
With strong attendances at A-League games on the weekend providing some cover for the Socceroos’ dismal performance in Paris, the FFA will be loath to disrupt the local game’s momentum and are sensitive to the impact the national appointment would have.
However, like an NRL assistant coach being released to take a senior job elsewhere, the convention is that a national call-up trumps any club role.
With Postecoglou throwing his hat in the ring, it seems unlikely his current contractual obligations with Victory would prevent him taking the Socceroos’ job.
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