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Emerton is far better than Harry Kewell

Archie Thompson, striker for Melbourne Victory, finds it hard to believe that Socceroos star Harry Kewell has joined the Hyundai A-League.

Having participated in three title deciders and clinching victory in two, Thompson has described the season opener against Sydney FC as “grand final level” and admits to feeling more nervous than ever at the start of a new season.

“At times, I go home and think, wow, we’ve got Harry Kewell,” Thompson remarked. “In truth, I’ve played alongside him for a long time with the Socceroos. Many of the players hadn’t had the chance to play with Harry; they were starstruck. A lot grew up idolising him. It was initially a bit standoffish, but now he’s just one of the lads.”

Thompson, renowned for netting five goals during Victory’s first grand final triumph over Adelaide United in 2006-2007, declares that Saturday night’s fixture is “right up there” among the most significant club matches in his career.

“It’s at grand final level,” he reiterated.

“I still feel we owe them one after losing the grand final a few seasons back (in a penalty shoot-out in 2009-2010). Plus, there’s the excitement of Harry Kewell and Brett Emerton joining the mix.”

“We’ll be in front of around 40,000 fans at home.”

“I can’t imagine a better way to kick off the season.”

A seasoned A-League player, Thompson has been a part of the competition since its beginning. Nevertheless, he confesses to feeling jittery as this year promises to be the most thrilling since 2005.

“I’m actually very nervous,” Thompson admitted.

“Every year brings its own anticipation, but this season stands out for me as one of the most exhilarating, given the talent we’ve got and the standard of football we’re witnessing now.”

“Brisbane has raised the bar – we have to match that height. It’s only going to grow from here.”

This season, Victory coach Mehmet Durakovich enjoys an abundance of attacking options, and Thompson is eager to see the potential of their squad unfold.

“When you look at our offense, with Harry, Carlos (Hernandez), (Marco) Rojas, (Jean Carlos) Solorzano, (Tom) Pondeljak, myself, and (Danny) Allsopp, any A-League team would love to have one or two of us, but we’ve got six or seven.”

“What we’re now on the lookout for is defensive strength. We were close to securing (Melbourne Heart’s Simon) Colosimo, among a few other potentials, that didn’t materialize.”

“We’re incredibly lucky to have such talented players at the front.”

With such skills on display, along with the allure of Kewell, Thompson expects a surge of fans at Etihad Stadium this season.

“We’ve always had a devoted supporters’ group, even before Harry’s arrival. But with Harry onboard… it’s going to attract a new wave of fans who may not have previously followed our sport but are fans of the Socceroos or Harry.”

Buford Balony says: There are perhaps worse signings than Culina; we all know Kewell will only manage a handful of games before an injury will rule him out, likely due to something trivial that wouldn’t sideline most players.

I believe Emerton is a far superior signing.

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