Wanderers Hyundai A-League interim head coach Jean Paul de-Marigny spoke to the media this morning ahead of the trip to the Central Coast this weekend.
New signing Simon Cox is set to make his Wanderers debut in the match with de Marigny happy with the way the Irish International has fitted in with the squad since his arrival.
Cox joined the Wanderers after a 15-year stint playing in England and is a proven goalscorer, having scored 42 goals in 133 games for his previous club Southend United.
“He is in decent shape,” said de Marigny.
“Andy (Davies) our strength and conditioning coach has worked really well with him in the last couple of weeks.
“Simon will have an impact on the game.”
de Marigny remained coy as to whether he will use Cox as a lone striker against the Mariners or play him upfront with a partner. The Wanderers played with two upfront in their 1-0 loss to Perth Glory in their last game.
“We have tinkered with a few things tactically, but I can’t say what that is,” said de Marigny.
“It will come out on Sunday.”
“It (the bye) did come at a good time because it gave us a chance to reset and load up the players physically and gave us the chance to work tactically with them.
“The two weeks were all about our mindset … we worked a lot on that.
“We tweaked a couple of things tactically, nothing too drastic, and the boys have responded really well. They are in a good space and they have enjoyed the couple of weeks.
“Being positive is important as is doing everything together. Communication is also important.”
The Red & Black welcome back Olyroos representatives Tass Mourdoukoutas and Keanu Baccus.
The duo was in excellent form during the qualifying tournament in Thailand and earned high praise from national coach Graham Arnold for helping the Olyroos qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.
“Tass and Keanu are fit and well and will have strong roles to play,” said de Marigny.
“They did a great job in Thailand and I got some great feedback from Arnie.”
