Melbourne City are due to have a bit of a rebuild again next season.
With the club having its worst season since the City Football Group takeover, along with a plethora of players coming off contract and no coach signed for next season, City is due for a massive rebuild next season to get it back to the winning ways fans had come to expect.
City will be looking to make signings of intent in the off-season to remind the rest of the competition why we won three consecutive Premiers plates, and these are the signings that I think will do that.
Short side-note before we begin: Both Josh Nisbet & Kai Trewin have been heavily linked with the club for next season, so I have decided to leave those two out. But personally I would love to see both in City Blue next season.
1. RENO PISCOPO
The first signing I think City should make is a player that fans have been hoping to see at City for quite a few years now.
Reno Piscopo is a 25-year-old winger/attacking midfielder who is currently playing for the Newcastle Jets, but is out of contract at the end of the season.
Piscopo is a technically gifted winger who has excellent close control and the ability to take on defenders 1 on 1, which is a trait that has felt absent from City’s side this season.
The Melbourne-born winger has suffered with injuries in the past, but City’s medical team has a history of getting injury-prone players back to their best and playing consistent football, examples being both Curtis Good & Andrew Nabbout, so I have confidence that Piscopo can come to the club and be able to play consistently.
Piscopo being 25 years old is also a massive bonus as well, with the club likely looking to drop the average age of the team, not to mention having players who can potentially play long-term for the club which is massive if we want to see a return of sustained success again.
2. APOSTOLOS STAMATELOPOULOS
With rumours going around that Jamie Maclaren is set to depart the club at the end of the season, City will certainly be looking to bring in a new striker.
Although I personally feel the club will look to bring in a foreign marquee to replace Maclaren, one option is Newcastle Jets striker Apostolos Stamatelopoulos. The 25-year-old has had a breakout season with the Newcastle Jets scoring 15 goals in 22 games. Although he’s a similar sort of striker to Maclaren, with both liking to feed off players around them, Stametolopolous is also fairly comfortable holding up the ball, and with him also being over 6ft tall, he adds an option aerially in the final third as well.
The main issue with Stametolopolous right now is he is still contracted to Newcastle Jets for another season, and with the A-League having no domestic transfer system, the only way the player could sign for the club is by terminating his contract with the Jets or, in pretty dark circumstances, if the Newcastle Jets don’t find an owner and the club goes under, Stametolopolous will become a free agent.
3. MACKLIN FREKE
With Jamie Young being 38 and only signing a one-year deal with the club, City will likely be wanting to bring in a new long-term Goalkeeper. Although the club has both Patrick Beach and James Niewenhuizen as already contracted options, neither of them has made a single senior appearance yet, so it seems unlikely that one of them will be the number one goalkeeper next season so someone more proven will likely be coming in, with my choice being Macklin Freke.
Macklin Freke has had a bit of a breakout season with Brisbane Roar, and this is the first year fans around the league have seen him as a top prospect. The 25-year-old keeper is off contract at the end of the season and would be an excellent option for City if they wanted to bring in a keeper of his style.
Freke is confident with the ball at his feet, which is essential in the way City wants to play and has also proven to be an excellent shot-stopper, who would surely only get better at City.
With Freke still only being 25 there is still a chance City could give him a platform to play a couple of seasons with the club and then head to Europe, which would then give a pathway to one of Patrick Beach or James Niewenhuizen in the near future.
4. ANGEL TORRES
Another signing I think City should make next season is 24-year-old Colombian winger Angel Torres. Torres, who currently plays for Central Coast Mariners is out of contract at the end of the season and could be an excellent option for City next season.
With Leo Natel, Marin Jakolis & Marco Tilio’s loans expiring at the end of the season, City will no doubt be looking to bring in a new winger next season and Torres would be my first pick. Despite a slow start, Torres this season has 13 goals and three assists in 22 A-League Men’s games and would fit the “City style of play” very well. Torres can play on either wing and is a very well-rounded player.
City would be competing with many different clubs around the world for his signature, but if the club can offer him either a Marquee or Designated Player deal, I see no reason why the winger wouldn’t want to join the club. Also with Torres being 24, he could easily play at City for a few seasons and then be sold to another CFG club or any other club in Europe.
5. THÉO PELLENARD
With Matt Vandenberg on X reporting that Curtis Good has signed for a Thai League side, the club will no doubt be looking for a suitable replacement. Although it has been heavily rumoured that Kai Trewin will be joining the club next season, Curtis Good is a very different profile and a much harder player to replace, which is why I have gone with a player who currently plays outside the A-League for the first time in this list.
Théo Pellenard is a 30-year-old French centre-back who currently plays for table-topping Ligue 2 side AJ Auxerre. The former French youth international has excellent ball-playing ability for a centre-back, which will be a must-have essential to whoever comes in to replace Good if he leaves.
Although convincing the player to fly across the world might be tricky, City have had success recruiting from France with the likes of Florin Berengeur, Valon Berisha, Hamza Sakhi, Marin Jakolis & Samuel Souprayen all coming from those leagues, so there definitely seems to be interest playing in Australia from France.
All five of these players would be excellent choices for Michael Petrillo and the scouting team to look at in my opinion, and I feel they would fit the club well as they look to rebuild for next season.
