Steve Orme and Adam Lucius
Sydney FC's wounded marquee man John Aloisi is confident his stint on the sidelines with a foot injury will be short lived.
Aloisi, who aggravated the injury during the filming of an official A-League commercial last month, will miss his new side's opening-round-grudge match with Pre Season Cup winners Melbourne Victory in Sydney on Saturday night.
Speaking at the official season launch in Sydney on Monday, the well credentialed 32-year-old would not be drawn on a specific date but said his return to action was imminent.
"Not too far," Aloisi said of his likely return for the sky blues.
"I've been running and this week I'll pick it up again. I'm not sure which game I'll be back but hopefully I'll be back soon."
Sydney FC coach John Kosmina shares his star striker's confidence and says the early setback could prove beneficial as the season progresses.
"Johnny should be available by the end of the month or certainly after the FIFA (international fixtures) weekend (September 6/7)," Kosmina said.
"He was going really well until his foot injury occurred."
"We've looked after that and 'rehab-ed' him (and) it was a blessing in disguise in a lot of ways because it just gave us more time to make sure everything else was in good condition."
Aloisi called for his new team-mates to step up in the absence of several key players on Saturday night.
"At the moment we've got a few injuries, suspensions and a couple of players away with the Olyroos so we're going to be under strength a little bit but we've still got a good enough squad to get a good result on the weekend," Aloisi said.
He added: "You're not going to win the championship anyway in one game so we've got a good enough squad to go through the season and hopefully we'll be up there at the end."
Meanwhile, Aloisi concedes his transition from the Central Coast Mariners to the inaugural A-League champions has been made easier by a number of familiar faces now at the club.
"I was lucky I knew most of them (the players and coach John Kosmina) before I arrived in Sydney and they've helped me settle in quite quickly and now I just can't wait to start playing and for the season to get under way," he said
Asked if anything had surprised him about his new coach, a playful Aloisi quipped: "That he's put on a bit of weight."
"No nothing's surprised me about 'Kossie'," he added, being sure to point out he was joking.
"I've known 'Kossie' for a little bit and everyone knows what 'Kossie' is like, he's been very successful as a coach and as a player and we're hoping for more success under him this year."