- Aloisi brothers clashed as coaches in A-League
- John got the chocolates with Brisbane Roar
- Earned a red card as coach in emotional display
The thunderous left boot of John Aloisi famously hoisted the Socceroos into the FIFA World Cup during the unforgettable 2005 penalty shootout against Uruguay in 2005.
Now the Western United coach has joked that fans were lucky he didn’t break that big kick out again after receiving a red card for his behaviour in the A-League derby against his brother on Friday.
John got a tense 2-1 win over the Brisbane Roar who are coached by his brother Ross Aloisi and his emotions boiled over at times, receiving his first yellow card for kicking advertising hoarding on the sideline.
‘By the way it was with my right foot,’ he said about kicking the advertising hoarding.
‘If it had been my left foot then it would have been a real kick – it (the hoarding) would’ve ended up in the stands.’
Aloisi ignited the nation when he kicked the winning penalty goal against Uruguay in Sydney in 2005 to lift the Socceroos into the World Cup
It was always going to be a dramatic match with the Aloisi brothers coming head to head
It was a match full of drama as Western United snapped a six-game losing streak in a game that included two penalties, disallowed goals and then a 91st minute winner from Josh Risdon.
But John had to watch the final 20 minutes from the stands after getting a red card for dissent after Daniel Penha’s disallowed goal and then kicking the advertising.
But he was unapologetic for his actions, saying it was just passion for the sport.
‘If I can’t show passion in the game – we’re trying to promote the game,’ John Aloisi said.
‘I’m not swearing at that stage. I’ve just run on to the field to celebrate a little bit and then I kicked the little advertising thing on the side and that’s emotion, frustration.
‘I didn’t know the goal was disallowed. Mind you, I’m celebrating a little bit, in an angry face. Probably I could have gotten sent off before during the game for some of my antics, but not (that).
‘Anyway, I have to deal with it, have to accept it.
‘But it’s the emotion of the game, it’s the emotion of what we’ve been through in the last six games. And you know what? I’m not going to apologise for showing emotion.
‘Sometimes emotions do come out… I don’t think that it should be a bad thing.’
Aloisi has defended his emotion on the sidelines saying it is good for the A-League
While Western United are having a tough season so far, Aloisi has won the A-League title with them in 2022
Aloisi also spoke about the relief of snapping the six-game losing skid and the pressure that came saddled with the losing run. ‘It was more a relief because the boys have deserved a lot more – that’s the relief,’ he said.
‘I can handle people criticising me because I’ve had it in the past and I’ll have it in the future. That’s going to happen. That’s part of our game.
‘My belief never strayed at all and the players’ belief had never really gone. Again that showed tonight. It would have been easy for them to fold, 1-0 down, but they kept on going, kept on going and and so I’m just pleased for them.’