Patience is a virtue for ALM strugglers Perth Glory

Joanna Guelas |

Perth Glory coach David Zdrilic will be looking for his first A-League win against Adelaide.
Perth Glory coach David Zdrilic will be looking for his first A-League win against Adelaide.

Perth Glory coach David Zdrilic is refusing to be disheartened by the embattled club’s horror start to the A-League Men season.

The Glory have lost four of five games and will be searching for a maiden victory under new coach Zdrilic when they face an undefeated Adelaide United side on Friday.

Perth are 12th (one point) and have the worst goal difference (-14), while Adelaide are fourth (10 points).

Defeating Carl Veart’s side at their Coopers Stadium fortress will be no easy feat for the Glory, but Zdrilic is optimistic about the road ahead.

Under new owners the Pelligra Group, Perth are undergoing an off-pitch reboot in a bid to restore the wooden spooners to their glory days.

The Glory last won silverware in the 2018/19 season, claiming the premiership before finishing runners-up for the championship.

Currently based in Fremantle and training across different venues, the Glory are set to move their operations into a new high-performance facility in Mirrabooka next year.

“The pressure is always there to want to see a win,” Zdrilic said.

“The results are not there, not good enough, no one’s happy and we want to improve that, but the whole club’s going to have a different feel in six to 12 months.

“There’s so much happening at this club that’s positive.

Glory coach David Zdrilic.
Perth Glory coach David Zdrilic has been impressed by his players’ work ethic. (Mark Evans/AAP PHOTOS)

“All the improvements are happening slowly on the pitch, hopefully that leads to results very quickly.

“I’ve come into an environment where we’re training in different grounds, we don’t have our set venue to train at.

“That’s going to change in a short space of time.”

Though Glory coughed up a one-goal lead to lose 3-1 to Western United in their Unite Round fixture, Zdrilic praised his players’ work ethic during their rebuild.

“In a run of games like we’ve had, you can expect a group to either fight and reset, or they start looking for excuses,” he said.

“The guys haven’t given any excuses. Everyone’s putting their hand up to play.

“You’ve got to commend them for that. We want to get that first. 

“We want to get results, and there’s no better side to do it against than someone like Adelaide, who’s in top form.”

In other ALM action on Saturday, table leaders Auckland FC are back at home against Newcastle, and Melbourne City welcome Western Sydney to AAMI Park.

Macarthur FC have the chance to heap more pressure on a winless Brisbane outfit, before Western United host Melbourne Victory for the only game on Sunday.

AAP