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History for Big Pete 65

WPM 2026/27 Squad Speculation, Confirmation and Mutual Termination

Current version

Posted September 10, 2026 16:17 · last edited September 10, 2026 16:24

coochiee wrote:
Try a six fold reduction!
In the Foxtel days central club distributions were about $3 million per club. Now it is $530k–$550k.

Hence yes lower quality visa players across the league, and some teams like the Jets almost bypassing them entirely.

While it's generally true that the visa players these days are from more modest playing backgrounds, some clubs continue to sign foreign players with experience in good leagues.
The Phoenix, throughout their history, have tended not to sign visa players with a background in decent leagues with a few exceptions (like Paul Ifill and Steven Taylor) and have never had marquee players.

Some quality players from decent leagues currently or recently at A-League clubs:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_A-League_Men_players

Marcelo – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2022–24 (PSV, Hannover, Lyon, Besiktas)
Germán Ferreyra – Melbourne City – 2024–26 (top tier Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Russia)
Andreas Kuen – Melbourne City – 2024–26 (Sturm Graz, Rapid Vienna, Greek Super League)
Dino Arslanagić – Macarthur FC – 2024–25 (bigger clubs in Belgium, Turkish Super Lig, Saudi Pro League)
Anselmo – Adelaide United – 2025– (top Brazilian clubs Internacional, Sporting Recife, Italian Serie A - Palermo, Parma)
Bobô – Sydney FC – 2016–18, 2021–22 (Corinthians, Cruzeiro, Gremio in Brazil; Beziktas in Turkey)
Douglas Costa – Sydney FC – 2024–25 (Bayern Munich, Juventus)
Fábio Gomes – Sydney FC – 2023–24 (top Brazilian clubs, New York Red Bulls)
Olivier Boumal – Newcastle Jets – 2021–22 (decade in Greek Super League with Panathinaikos etc., Yokohama in J-League; seven caps for Cameroons)
Darryl Lachman – Perth Glory – 2020–24 (191 Dutch Eredivisie matches)
Michael Jakobsen – Melbourne City – 2016–18, Adelaide United – 2018–22 (five Denmark caps; extensive career in Denmark and la Liga, Spain)
Yeni Ngbakoto – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2022–23 (two Congo caps; Ligue 1 with Metz, Nancy; QPR in England)
Marcel Tisserand – Sydney FC – 2025– (Congo 36 caps; extensive experience in Ligue 1, Bundesliga; Fenerbahçe in Turkey)
Mark Beevers – Perth Glory – 2022–24 (hundreds of games for Shefield Wednesday, Millwall and Bolton in the Championship)
Luke Amos – Perth Glory – 2025–26 (Spurs first teamer as a teenager but only one app.; almost 100 games for QPR; spell with Hibs)
Zach Clough – Adelaide United – 2022–25, Newcastle Jets – 2026–

(Forest and Bolton in the Championship)
Craig Noone – Melbourne City – 2019–21, Macarthur FC – 2021–23 (extensive Championship experience with Plymouth, Bolton, Cardiff and a season in the EPL with Cardiff)
Jack Rodwell – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2021–22, Sydney FC – 2022–24
(166 Premier League apps with Everton, Sunderland, Manchester City)
Daniel Sturridge – Perth Glory – 2021–22 (Chelsea and Liverpool legend)
Thomas Lam – Melbourne City – 2022–23 (about 160 Eredivisie games plus Nottingham Forest)
Damien Da Silva – Melbourne Victory – 2023–24, Macarthur FC – 2025–26

(more than 200 games in Ligue 1 for Caens, Rennes and Lyon)
Valère Germain – Macarthur FC – 2023–2025 (279 games for Monaco and Marseilles)
Zinédine Machach – Melbourne Victory – 2023–25 (Toulouse and Marseilles in Ligue 1, Dutch Eredivisie, Greek Super League)
Morgan Schneiderlin – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2023 (15 France caps; more than 200 EPL games for Manchester Utd, Everton and Southampton)
Samuel Souprayen – Melbourne City – 2023–26 (Rennes and Dijon in Ligie 1, Verona in Serie A)
Tolgay Arslan – Melbourne City – 2023–24 (five Bundesliga seasons with Hamburg, three seasons in Serie A with Udinese, seven seasons in Turkey with Fenerbahçe and Besiktas)

Nicolai Müller – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2019–21, Central Coast Mariners – 2021–2022 (Bundesliga with Mainz, Hamburg and Hannover)
Nikos Vergos – Melbourne Victory – 2024–26, Newcastle Jets – 2026–
(extensive Greek Super League experience)
Alessandro Diamanti – Western United – 2019–23 (17 Italy caps, 168 serie A apps, West Ham in the EPL)
Adrian Mariappa – Macarthur FC – 2021–22 (73 Jamaica caps; 149 EPL apps for Reading, Watford and Palace)
Valon Berisha – Melbourne City – 2022–23 (extensive experience in Austria with Salzburg and Serie A - Lazio , plus Bundesliga and Norway)
Tongo Doumbia – Western United – 2022–23 (20 Mali caps, extensive ezperience in Ligue 1 and two seasons with Wolves in the Championship)
Jorrit Hendrix – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2023–24 (238 PSV apps, one Netherlands cap)
Luciano Narsingh – Sydney FC – 2022 (115 PSV apps, two seasons with Swansea)Bart Vriends – Adelaide United – 2024– (about 230 Dutch Eredivisie apps)
Piero Quispe – Sydney FC – 2025–26 (13 Peru caps incl. 2026 WCQ; 68 apps for UNAM - Mexico)
Roderick Miranda – Melbourne Victory – 2021–26 (nine seasons in Portugal's top flight, a season with Wolves in England)
Ryan Fraser – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2026– (26 Scotland caps; 181 EPL apps for Bournemouth, Newcastle and Sothampton)
Miloš Ninković – Sydney FC – 2015–22, Western Sydney Wanderers – 2022–24 (28 Serbia caps; 109 apps for Dynamo Kiev, 27 for Red Star Belgrade)
Tom Lawrence – Perth Glory – 2025– (23 Wales caps; hundreds of Championship apps plus SPL)

PLUS Plenty of decent J-League players in recent years....

Previous versions

1 version

Big Pete 65 edited September 10, 2026 16:24

coochiee wrote:
Try a six fold reduction!
In the Foxtel days central club distributions were about $3 million per club. Now it is $530k–$550k.

Hence yes lower quality visa players across the league, and some teams like the Jets almost bypassing them entirely.

While it's generally true that the visa players these days are from more modest playing backgrounds, some clubs continue to sign foreign players with experience in good leagues.
The Phoenix have tended not to sign visa players with a background in decent leagues with a few exceptions (like Steven Taylor) and have never had marquee players.

Some quality players from decent leagues currently or recently at A-League clubs:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_A-League_Men_players

Marcelo – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2022–24 (PSV, Hannover, Lyon, Besiktas)
Germán Ferreyra – Melbourne City – 2024–26 (top tier Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Russia)
Andreas Kuen – Melbourne City – 2024–26 (Sturm Graz, Rapid Vienna, Greek Super League)
Dino Arslanagić – Macarthur FC – 2024–25 (bigger clubs in Belgium, Turkish Super Lig, Saudi Pro League)
Anselmo – Adelaide United – 2025– (top Brazilian clubs Internacional, Sporting Recife, Italian Serie A - Palermo, Parma)
Bobô – Sydney FC – 2016–18, 2021–22 (Corinthians, Cruzeiro, Gremio in Brazil; Beziktas in Turkey)
Douglas Costa – Sydney FC – 2024–25 (Bayern Munich, Juventus)
Fábio Gomes – Sydney FC – 2023–24 (top Brazilian clubs, New York Red Bulls)
Olivier Boumal – Newcastle Jets – 2021–22 (decade in Greek Super League with Panathinaikos etc., Yokohama in J-League; seven caps for Cameroons)
Darryl Lachman – Perth Glory – 2020–24 (191 Dutch Eredivisie matches)
Michael Jakobsen – Melbourne City – 2016–18, Adelaide United – 2018–22 (five Denmark caps; extensive career in Denmark and la Liga, Spain)
Yeni Ngbakoto – Western Sydney Wanderers – 2022–23 (two Congo caps; Ligue 1 with Metz, Nancy; QPR in England)
Marcel Tisserand – Sydney FC – 2025– (Congo 36 caps; extensive experience in Ligue 1, Bundesliga; Fenerbahçe in Turkey)
Mark Beevers – Perth Glory – 2022–24 (hundreds of games for Shefield Wednesday, Millwall and Bolton in the Championship)
Luke Amos – Perth Glory – 2025–26 (Spurs first teamer as a teenager but only one app.; almost 100 games for QPR; spell with Hibs)
Zach Clough – Adelaide United – 2022–25, Newcastle Jets – 2026–

PLUS Plenty of decent J-League players in recent years....