Popovic evaluates condition of Optus Stadium surface

Perth Glory head coach Tony Popovic outlined the differences he felt training on the new surface of Optus Stadium as opposed to their regular home venue of HBF Park ahead of Sunday’s A-League grand final.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday afternoon shortly after his side trained on the Optus Stadium surface ahead of their clash with Sydney FC, Popovic says he’s fully confident his Perth Glory side can win the A-League grand final if they show the same quality they’ve shown him in training since the day he took over as head coach.

“It’s different, there’s a bounce in the ground,” Popovic said.

“We just had one session today and if we want another one we’ll get one on Saturday.It’s nice to be out here, we enjoyed it, just getting a feel of the pitch and the surroundings.

“We haven’t been here for a while, obviously since the Chelsea game. We also know why we are here, we deserve to be here, it’s a fantastic occasion on Sunday.”

With no fresh injury concerns Popovic has almost his entire squad to select from on Sunday afternoon.

But as his side head into the game as favourites, Popovic is not willing to let his 0-3 record in previous grand finals as coach of Western Sydney affecting his mentality leading into the game.

“The experience I’ve got is that I’ve lost three as a coach,” Popovic said.

“For me it’s a privilege to be in another grand final.

“I have a chance with this great group of players to experience a win, I’m looking forward to it as the players are and we’re doing everything we can in terms of our preparation and getting the players ready to step out and produce the performances I’ve been seeing every day at training.

“If we do that I’m very confident we’ll get the outcome that we want.”

Featured image credit: Matthew Comito