Melbourne City coach backs immediate A-League Men expansion

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 23 Oct, 02:20 · Archive

Melbourne City coach Aurelio Vidmar is calling for four new teams to be admitted to the A-League Men competition as soon as possible.

Aurelio Vidmar, coach of Melbourne City, is calling for the A-League Men hierarchy to "rip the Band-Aid off" and admit four new teams to the competition as soon as possible. He believes expansion would benefit the league and its players.

Vidmar argues that with 16 teams, the competition could run 30 home-and-away games plus finals. He said the league currently does not have enough games and the pre-season is too long. He suggested potential candidates for expansion could include South Melbourne, Adelaide City, Marconi and Sutherland, though he acknowledged he did not know which clubs would ultimately be selected.

He pointed to South Melbourne's recent Australia Cup triumph against Melbourne Victory, which was played before a sold-out crowd of 29,911 fans at AAMI Park, as evidence of the appetite for additional competition. "The narrative with South Melbourne has been pretty positive," he said. Vidmar believes all the teams he mentioned would be "absolutely competitive" in the A-League Men.

How it is being reported

• 'Rip the Band-Aid off': coach calls for ALM expansionMelbourne City's coach wants the A-League Men competition to expand, with four new clubs admitted as soon as possible.The West Australian · 23 Oct, 01:51
• 'Rip the Band-Aid off': coach calls for ALM expansionMelbourne City's coach wants the A-League Men competition to expand, with four new clubs admitted as soon as possible.Perth Now · 23 Oct, 01:51

In this story: Aurelio Vidmar · Melbourne City · South Melbourne · A-League Men · Melbourne Victory · AAMI Park

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