Talay insists Sydney FC is a ‘great occasion’ for Wellington

Wellington’s

head coach,

Ufuk Talay

, is eager to show his side’s promise by beating a side that beat them twice last season.

"Last season we played our best games against Sydney,"

Talay

said.

"We play a very similar style. We let them go a couple of times when we had them by the throat.

"Sydney are a very settled squad - they've had the same squad for quite a while - but it's a great occasion to play the champions in the first game.

"The boys will definitely be up for it. We're very excited and can't wait to start."

Talay

wants to see improvement in front of the goal as they have only scored 38 goals in 27 league games last season.

"We created a lot of scoring opportunities last season,"

noted

Talay

.

"If we can be more clinical this season - whether that's against Sydney or any other team - we'll be headed in the right direction."

Thanks to their impressive form before the Covid outbreak,

Wellington

were considered as title contenders last season. However, they failed to live up to expectations when the season resumed.

"Pre-season has been good, playing some A-League opponents,"

said

Talay

.

"Also, not having to start from scratch has been very important to us, building on what we achieved last season.

"Having the core of the group has helped to continue the work we did last season and the new players have settled in very quickly.

"They're new faces but they've played alongside each other in the All Whites."

Due to the Covid pandemic crisis, Phoenix was forced to relocate to Wollongong, 90km south of Sydney, while they still hope to play at home in New Zealand later this season.