Resurgent Sergio wants Victory scalp
Revitalised striker Sergio van Dijk has his sights firmly fixed on Friday’s trip to Melbourne - which he says will be the real test of the Roar’s championship credentials.
The Victorians were the last team to beat the Roar in the Hyundai A-League, when Archie Thompson-s header left the Suncorp Stadium crowd disappointed back in round 11.
Since then, the Roar have surged up the table to second, collecting three wins at home and two draws away.
At the heart of the resurgence has been van Dijk, who is living up to his pre-season promise with four goals in the past five matches.
But the big Dutchman is determined to maintain the form against the Victory, who sit behind the Roar only on goal difference.
“Melbourne is a different story,” van Dijk said. “I think they have the best squad of the whole league but you never know what happens in football.
“It-s going to be a hard game but we won over there in the first round so I always keep my hopes.
“We had some opportunities (against Wellington) but we made wrong decisions sometimes and that-s the thing you have to work on, especially against Melbourne.
“You have to be clinical and score when you can otherwise they will do it.
“If you beat Melbourne you make a really big step in the league.”
The strong target-man has scored in the last three games for the Roar and would love to make it four on Friday.
“You see when you score one goal as a striker you get extra confidence and that-s with every goal,” he said.
“Now I-ve scored three in a row and that-s good for the future.”
Van Dijk said he always maintained his belief in the team and himself despite an inconsistent start to the season.
“You can see how everything can change, especially this period of the season.
“Nobody-s talking anymore about that hoodoo thing (at Suncorp Stadium).”
Queensland Roar-s match against the Melbourne Victory kicks off at 7pm (AEST) Friday at the Telstra Dome in Melbourne.
The match will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1.