FOOTBALL Federation Australia officials are confident a deal has been made to sell the Newcastle Jets.
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Chief executive David Eland said last Tuesday that the FFA had advised him that the broad terms of the sale had been agreed and indicated the transaction would be completed in weeks.
Eland said he could not confirm the identity of the prospective owner, but it is the A-League’s worst-kept secret that FFA and Scottish multimillionaire Stephen Thompson have been engaged in negotiations for months. Thompson declined to comment when contacted by email last Tuesday.
Jets defender Daniel Mullen expects the focus to switch to the Wellington Phoenix and the A-League opener on October 11.
The Jets were to play an intraclub trial at Magic Park on Saturday, which doubled as a season launch. But the match was cancelled due to the waterlogged pitch.
‘‘The pre-season is almost over, we have played our competitive games, now it’s time to sharpen up and get ready for round one so that we can come out of the box firing,’’ he said.
It has been three months since Scott Miller was appointed coach.
In that time, he has assembled a new-look squad, played an FFA Cup game and five friendlies, the latest of which was a 1-0 win over the Central Coast Mariners in Orange.
Serbian striker Milos Trifunovic completed his first full session last Friday and Mullen, who played against the tall front man in the Chinese Super League, is confident he will succeed in the A-League.