Just eight games remain in this regular season and time is running out for Melbourne Victory. Actually, its felt like a race against time all along as we continue to wait for that elusive turning point. Well, its now or never as this week is set to be the most crucial yet.

Two games – one away to Gold Coast United, in Launceston tomorrow night and of course the third Melbourne Derby of the season on Saturday. Fail to pick up maximum points in these fixtures and we’ll really be cutting it thin to make the Finals. Following that we have the Mariners at home and Brisbane away which will no doubt be very tough games.

As I write this the squad has yet to be named for tomorrow’s match so I’ll leave it up to you to take a guess but I can tell you that the only injured player at the moment is Jimmy Jeggo. He’s suffering from a muscle strain but he’ll be assessed in the lead up to the game. Normally an injury to Jeggo wouldn’t concern me as the likelihood of him playing isn’t very high but considering we’ll be without Cernak, Ferreira and Foschini, who are all on Olyroos duty, he could fill a spot on the bench.

So, what can we expect to see Wednesday night? Your guess is as good as mine but I was pleased to read in yesterday’s Herald Sun that the players participated in a team bonding session on Friday following the draw with Sydney. I mentioned on the blog at the end of last year that maybe the players needed to rally together in order to sort some things out for themselves. Now that its actually happened lets hope it has a positive influence. Despite all the problems off the pitch the lack of passion and commitment shown by the players this season has been a contributing factor. Now is the time for them to step up.

In other news, as you’ve already heard no doubt, Adelaide United are said to be interested in acquiring Carlos Hernandez on loan for their Asian Champions League campaign. Hernandez, who is out of contract at the end of the season, told the media last year that he’s happy to stay in Melbourne but in order to do so the Club would have to loan him out in the off-season. He wants to be playing regularly to increase his chances of national team selection and going on loan is his best chance of doing so.

There has been a lot of speculation on Carlos’ future but its all a bit unclear at this stage. The Club were set to begin negotiations with Hernandez over a new contract this month but since Magilton was appointed those talks have been put on hold. Its a wise decision because it gives the Club a chance to assess the entire squad at the end of the season. There will no doubt be plenty of departures in the off-season but in my opinion Carlos shouldn’t be one of them. We all know he hasn’t been at his best in recent times but who’s to say he won’t or can’t achieve that level again? I think its unfair to criticize him when the entire team has been poor – and if he’s still good enough for another A-League team then he’s still good enough for us.

Hernandez is arguably the best player to ever wear a Victory shirt and letting him go would be one of the worst decisions they could ever make. As for loaning him out, of course I’d prefer it wasn’t Adelaide but if it means he gets to stay in Melbourne then so be it. It still wouldn’t sit right with me but sometimes you have to make sacrifices.

And lastly, the FFA want to reduce the number of foreign players per team from five to four. Several clubs are opposed to the decision but personally I’m still torn on the issue. Some say it will give more young Australian players a chance and that the high number of average imports in the past is also a good reason for reducing visa spots. I’d argue though that some of the local players to gain A-League contracts haven’t been up to scratch either. In the end though its just one spot and probably won’t make that big a difference. If anything it means that clubs will really have to make the most of the four visa spots and bring in higher quality players.

Well, lets leave it there for today. Fingers crossed for tomorrow night. Come on Melbourne.