Ognenovski still in national team contention

Australia defender Sasa Ognenovski is confident he can regain his spot in Holger Osieck’s Socceroos side.

The 32-year-old has not started for his country since an October 7 friendly against Malaysia, with coach Osieck opting for Matthew Spiranovic in the centre of defence for both his side’s World Cup qualifiers against Oman and their most recent outing against Thailand.

Ognenovski, who plays his club football for Korean outfit Seongnam, is unfazed by Osieck’s decision to opt for 23-year-old Spiranovic, and said it is important to blood the next generation of players.

“He’s got to give Spira a go. Both me and Lucas (Neill) are 32 and 33 respectively,” Ognenovski said.

“If injury comes along and Spira gets thrown into the deep end, especially in the next round (of World Cup qualifying), he might find it difficult.”

“So I think he’s just giving him some game time to make sure that he’s ready and knows what to expect in the next round.”

Ognenovski said he has all but given up on his dream of playing in Germany’s Bundesliga, and said the prohibitive price tag his Korean club have put on him means he will likely serve out the year remaining on his contract.

“I don’t think so,” Ognenovski said when quizzed about a possible move to Germany, “just because of the transfer fee that’s on my head. None of the European clubs are paying.”

The centre back cited the example of Borussia Dortmund’s 18-year-old midfielder Mustafa Amini, who is back at A-League club the Central Coast Mariners on-loan after signing with the German champions in July.

“If Borussia Dortmund are only willing to pay 200,000 (euros) for him, then not many clubs are going to pay 500 for me,” he said.

“I’ve got a contract, there’s a little bit of interest here and there but there’s nothing concrete so at the moment it’s just speculation.”

Ognenovski is training with the Melbourne Heart while in his home town for the holidays, and said he would love to return to Australia when his time in Korea comes to an end.

“(I’m) just ticking over so I don’t go back to Korea empty for preseason,” he said.

“It’s (Heart’s Bundoora training headquarters) close to home – I just live in Preston and my wife’s the number one supporter here. She tries to watch them live from Korea every time they play.”

“I’m probably looking at playing another couple of seasons in Asia and then if I’m fit enough and healthy enough and good enough, then I’d probably come back and play for a year or two in the A-League.”