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A new era has begun at A-League Men club Perth Glory, with former Socceroos striker David Zdrilic appointed to lead the revamped squad for the next three years.
Perth Glory believe they have unearthed a diamond in the rough in new coach David Zdrilic, with fans promised some high-octane football to get them "pumping".
Former Socceroos striker Zdrilic was on Friday revealed as Glory's new A-League Men coach, on a three-year deal.
Former mentor Alen Stajcic, who still had two more years to run on his contract, stepped down this week to move to Western Sydney Wanderers.
Zdrilic's resume includes working alongside world-renowned coaches Ralf Rangnick, Julian Nagelsmann and Ralph Hasenhuttl at Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig.
He also gained experience at US side Chicago Fire in MLS, and became the first Australian to hold a coaching position in Italy's Serie A when he joined Genoa in 2022.
The 50-year-old returned to Australia with Sydney FC at the start of last season as an assistant under then-head coach Steve Corica, and stayed on to work under his replacement Ufuk Talay.
Glory finished bottom of the ladder last season, and Zdrilic is determined to lead the club into an era of success in the first head-coaching role of his career.
"Our team will play an attacking, high-intensity brand of football which gets our members and fans out of their seats," Zdrilic said.
"It's a new attractive way of playing. And I know it's a buzz word - everyone says they're attractive, we're intense.
"(At Sydney) we were playing a style that most people enjoyed, and that's what I want to bring here as well.
"If it's done properly, it should be attractive football, it should be really high tempo, high energy ... and if the fans jump on board with that, then this place will be pumping."
Glory are in the midst of a huge rebuild on the back of their wooden spoon last season, when they spent more than half the campaign without an owner.
Darryl Lachman, Mark Beevers, Aleksandar Susnjar, Bruce Kamau, Antonis Martis, Jayden Gorman, Adam Zimarino, Salim Khelifi and Jaylan Pearman have all been let go.
Rising star Daniel Bennie secured a move to English Championship side Queens Park Rangers, while Stefan Colakovski, Josh Rawlins and John Koutroumbis have also pursued opportunities overseas.
Glory have signed former Socceroos defender Josh Risdon and ex-Perth skipper Brandon O'Neill, as well as Taras Gomulka, Nathanael Blair, Adam Bugarija, Abdelelah Faisal, Nicholas Pennington, Anas Hamzaoui and Zach Lisolajski.
Since coach Tony Popovic left Perth in 2020, Richard Garcia, Ruben Zadkovich and Stajcic have all tried and failed to bring back the glory days.
But with new owner Ross Pelligra now in place, and former Socceroos star Stan Lazaridis appointed as football director, there is a strong level of stability at the club.
Lazaridis played a key role in luring Zdrilic to Glory, and he believes he has found a winner.
"He was getting circled by so many different people," Lazaridis said of his former Socceroos teammate.
"He's done a long apprenticeship, he's gone on his own will to learn and invest ... in himself.
"He didn't just snap at the first job that was offered.
"He learned under really top coaches, he's a type of guy always looking forward, evolving with the game.
"David is one of those ones that was like this diamond that's ready to come out."
Zdrilic scored 21 goals across his 31 Socceroos appearances - including eight in the famous 31-0 thrashing of American Samoa in 2001.
