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Australia´s Aloisi signs on at Sydney FC
SYDNEY (AFP) - Sydney FC on Monday unveiled strike pair John Aloisi and Mark Bridge and former Perth Glory midfielder Simon Colosimo as their key signings for the 2008-09 Australian A-League season.
Aloisi, 32, who played for Central Coast Mariners in last month's 1-0 grand final loss to Newcastle, signed a two-year deal as the club's marquee player, Sydney FC said.
His contract figure was not disclosed but it is reportedly worth 1.4 million dollars (1.3 million USD) a season, making the Socceroos striker the highest-paid footballer of any code based in Australia.
Bridge, 22, joins from Newcastle on a three-year deal, after scoring the winner in the grand final victory.
Colosimo, 29, joined on a two-year deal with Sydney in an ambitious rebuilding phase aimed at recapturing the title they won in the A-League's inaugural season in 2005-06.
"Sydney FC have started their renewal and rebuilding process," club chairman Andrew Kemeny told reporters.
"Our number-one task is to introduce fresh, quality players to our squad. We are going for quality rather than quantity this time.
"We have this opportunity because we have a number of players who have not renewed their contract, or have not had their contact renewed, or have been transferred or retired."
The Mariners gave up in their bid to retain Aloisi on Saturday, saying they could not match the money offered by rival clubs.
Aloisi's expensive signing opens speculation on the future of Sydney star Juninho, with Perth Glory and potential new club Gold Coast Galaxy believed to be interested in the 35-year-old playmaker.
Kemeny said Sydney still had a "50-50" chance of retaining the Brazilian World Cup winner under the A-League salary cap.
The club have also left the door open for possibly extending the contract of Socceroo defender Mark Milligan.
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