Farina appointed to vacant Sydney FC role

Former long-serving Australia coach Frank Farina has been appointed head coach of Sydney FC for the remainder of the season. Farina, who coached Papua New Guinea in 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ qualifiers in June, is set to arrive in Sydney later this week and will take charge for Sunday's home match against Melbourne Heart. The 48-year-old Farina replaces Ian Crook who resigned suddenly earlier this month, while interim coach Steve Corica, who oversaw the last two matches, will continue on as Farina's assistant. Farina has previously coached in the A-League with Brisbane Roar for a three-year period ending in 2009, and was in charge of Australia from 1999 to 2005. Capped 37 times by Australia as a forward, Farina led the Socceroos in two FIFA World Cup campaigns, as well as the 2001 and 2005 FIFA Confederations Cups with the former including wins over Brazil and world champions France. Farina, returns to a city in which he played and coached in the old National Soccer League with firstly Sydney City, and then Marconi Stallions where he made his debut in the dugout. Farina says he is happy for the opportunity at a high profile club such as Sydney. "There is a lot of attention on Sydney FC and I'm looking forward to getting to Sydney and working with the players and staff to create an environment where we can be successful on the pitch," Farina said. Sydney FC, from Australia’s largest city, sit bottom of the ladder with just two wins from the opening eight rounds. The off-season signing of Italian superstar Alessandro Del Piero, to a team which also includes experienced Socceroo midfielder Brett Emerton, has not proven enough to save the Sky Blues from a string of losses.