Viduka weighing up Socceroo's future.....

[serious14]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/football/viduka-weighing-up-socceroos-future/2008/04/09/1207420487104.html

"Mark Viduka will consider prolonging his international career if Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek allows him to select the games he plays.

Verbeek, who will meet Viduka this weekend to discuss the player's future, will no doubt be heartened to learn that the 2006 World Cup captain remains open minded about a return to the international arena. Viduka has not played for the Socceroos since their quarter final defeat to Japan at last year's Asian Cup, prompting speculation that his retirement from international football was imminent.

But the Newcastle United striker said he remained passionate about the Australian cause, and would consider returning for another World Cup tilt, providing Verbeek was willing to work in with his demanding club schedule.

"It's a really tough decision for me with Australia because I'm at the age where I have to look after my body and get the most out of it that I can," Viduka told the Journal. "I love meeting up with the guys and representing my country, but I want to play for Newcastle for as long as, and as often as, I can. I want to be able to give 100% to Newcastle. I might be able to pick and choose international games, but I'm having a chat with the coach at the weekend so we'll see what comes from that."

Viduka has played a leading role in Newcastle's recent revival, scoring twice in the past three games. The 32-year-old's most recent goal against Reading was observed first hand by Verbeek and Graham Arnold, who travelled to St James Park ahead of their meeting with Viduka this weekend.

The addition of an in-form Viduka for Australia's World Cup qualifiers in June would be a significant coup for Verbeek, particularly with injury concerns surrounding English Premier League contemporaries Tim Cahill and Harry Kewell. A spokesman for Newcastle United this week said Viduka had given no firm indication regarding his international future and the player's agent, Steve Kutner, did not return calls.

Ominously, Viduka warned his best might be yet to come this year.

"I'm not at my strongest, I'm still working my way back ... because I had a couple of niggling injuries," he said. "As you get older it gets tougher to shake them off and I'm into my 30s now. When you're young you recover quicker, you can shake things off and you can play with the knocks. It doesn't affect you as much, but I'm not that age any more. I just have to accept that and do the best I can."

Viduka also raised the possibility of pursuing a coaching career in England after his playing days are over.

"We've been in England for so long now we see it as our home," he said. "After I finish playing I'll see what I want to do and have a little break before deciding. Maybe if I miss it that much I might go into coaching.""


Yeah, ummmm........... no.  This is exactly the sort of "orrrrr yeah, she'll be right cobber" attitude that led to disaster in the Asian Cup.  You either commit to all or you commit to none.  So sick of this lassez-faire attitude towards national team duty.  It is an HONOR AND A PRIVILEGE to play for your country, not a piecemeal opportunity for you to go "nah, don't feel like playing this week".

Just retire from the Socceroos, collect your fat bastard salary from Newcastle every week spare us the sight of you standing at the top of the box for 90 minutes for Australia ever again.  Arrogant, lazy prick.

 

[northernspirit]

dukes has been a good servent to the game for a long time thats a bit harsh, we need to remember he is no spring chicken anymore and his body wont hold up to the amount of travel required... if he were younger i would agree with you

 

[Paolo]

He has f**ked us around for long enough...time to cut our losses and focus on developing players who want to be there instead of excluding them for a person who isnt committed to the qualifying process.

 

[FFC Mariner]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

 

[Sean]

He has f**ked us around for long enough...time to cut our losses and focus on developing players who want to be there instead of excluding them for a person who isnt committed to the qualifying process.

I have never really respected Viduka due to this.
He wont be my favourite player when/if he returns to Australia for the A-league.

 

[Sean]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

Scott Douglas Mcdonald

 

[FFC Mariner]

I was actually thinking of applying myself TBH.

Overweight, lazy, no work rate.

I'm your guy (cheaper than him too)

 

[skilbeck]

The problem is SFA depth. Australia can put about 11 out there that are competitive with about 20-30 ranked countries in the world, but after that we struggle. until we can solve that problem people like Viduka will f**k us around

 

[Kareem]

Yeah, ummmm........... no.  This is exactly the sort of "orrrrr yeah, she'll be right cobber" attitude that led to disaster in the Asian Cup.  You either commit to all or you commit to none.  So sick of this lassez-faire attitude towards national team duty.   It is an HONOR AND A PRIVILEGE to play for your country, not a piecemeal opportunity for you to go "nah, don't feel like playing this week".

Just retire from the Socceroos, collect your fat bastard salary from Newcastle every week spare us the sight of you standing at the top of the box for 90 minutes for Australia ever again.  Arrogant, lazy prick.

my thoughts exactly!!!
the australia shirt is an honour to wear something every player should do anything to get their hands on one...not push it away!

 

[T]

If he doesn't want to play, then there is no point in pushing it. I'd rather have someone on the field who really wants to be there than someone who is there cause he has nothing better to do.

 

[midfielder]

Don't bag people out for telling the truth as they see it.

Dukes to his credit said I cannot play all the games my body won't take it. Look at H for all the name callers over the years and at 25 / 26 his body gave in. These guys play heaps of matches and I say if Dukes, Josh, McDonald and so can play the matches between them without burning them out than that is a good thing.

As to whether Dukes is the answer to our up front problems.............that is a different question ........but for telling things as he feels is to be praised not bagged out IMO.

Also he is telling how hard it is for all players and for that we can be thankful.

 

[serious14]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

Sasho??   

 

[skilbeck]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

Sasho??   

well theres always the fattest and laziest bastard in world football but the only problem is that he isnt Australian but im sure we could give him citizenship to extend his international career. I am talking about the one and only Mario Jardel

 

[priorpeter]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

Sasho??   

well theres always the fattest and laziest bastard in world football but the only problem is that he isnt Australian but im sure we could give him citizenship to extend his international career. I am talking about the one and only Mario Jardel

Oh God.. I don't even dare think what that would be like, having him pull on a Socceroos jersey... *cringe*

 

[serious14]

From the "On the Box" segment in today's SMH.....

FOOTBALL. Birmingham v Everton, Bolton v West Ham, Derby v Aston Villa, Tottenham v Middlesbrough or Reading v Fulham (viewers' choice) from midnight. Portsmouth v Newcastle from 2.15. Is On The Box right in thinking Mark Viduka is the most overrated sportsman this country has produced? Let's list his qualities: he's a bit fat; he is the football world's most accomplished practitioner of the useless, edge-of-the-box backheel; he can hold a ball up, turn, then get dispossessed better than anyone; he missed that header against Uruguay in 2001. Best of all his qualities, though, is his extreme ambivalence about playing for his nation. Just this week Pim Verbeek has flown to England to check in on a few of the UK-based Socceroos and attempt to coax Viduka into returning to the national team. Guus Hiddink had to dangle the carrot of the captaincy to get the man to commit to the Socceroos. And for what? Apart from some nice work falling over in the 18-yard box (but not drawing any penalties) during the World Cup match against Croatia, On The Box struggles to think of a meaningful Socceroos game in the past seven years in which Viduka has performed to expectations. Yet the coaches continue to woo him. Hiddink and now Verbeek: never has so much energy been expended to entice a man to contribute so little. What's clear in all this is that Viduka, no matter how committed to the national cause he may have been in the past, really couldn't give much of a toss about it now. This week, in an interview with Newcastle daily The Nation, he even floated a scenario in which he might be able to "pick and choose international games" (adding in the same breath that he will probably stay and live in England after he retires). Truly, this is a man who will bleed for his nation - providing he's not already booked on the night he's being asked to bleed. The compromise between love of country and prior dinner engagements can only go so far. We mean no criticism by these comments. Australia can go suck, as far as this column is concerned. We say this simply because, when the alternatives are laid completely upon the table, the idea of skiving off to the Dalmatian Coast for a month of seafood and cevapcici, as Viduka no doubt would do were he not to have to commit to qualifiers and tournaments, appeals to us a lot more than sitting around waiting to board a plane for Baghdad or Qatar and the prospect of six hours sitting next to David Carney. Surely, when you're an overweight 32-year-old master of the useless backheel who's past his prime and never used to be much chop in the national team anyway, life becomes about so much more than small talk with Carney. The problem is not with Viduka. Viduka is awesome. The problem is the coaches remain fixated on this idea of "enticing" him back into the national team, as if this will somehow provide a panacea to all our attacking ills, when in the past precisely the opposite has been shown to be true. They should just give up and let the man retire to his yacht in peace, where he can backheel balls into the Adriatic and complain about "mental exhaustion" to his heart's content. The future of the Socceroos front line is not Mark Viduka. The future is Tolgay Ozbey, Adam Kwasnik and Jobe Wheelhouse.

 

[Arabmariner]

  Lawrie must have written that article.

Or Kwas himself!!  ;D

 

[Omni]

Cant we find a fat lazy bastard who is prepared to play in EVERY game???

Scott Douglas Mcdonald

He'll even complain when he gets subbed. KWASSIE FOR THE ROOS

 

[Part_Timer]

kwassie 08