Victory made big strides in recruiting ahead of this season, signing the A-League's number one striker, Besart Berisha, from Brisbane Roar, as well as bringing Australia midfielder Carl Valeri back to Australia.

Delpierre hasn't had as much publicity as the other pair, but Finkler says the Frenchman, who has extensive experience in the German Bundesliga with VfB Stuttgart, is going to stun audiences with his commanding presence in the central defence.

"Matthieu is a very good signing, we are very lucky to get him," Finkler said. "He's got a great profile and he has settled down very well for us.

"He's a player no-one is talking about, but when the season starts they're going to start talking about him. He'll be a real star for Victory. He's a very important player and he's going to help us a lot this season, for sure."

Brazilian attacking midfielder Finkler said Delpierre would rule from the back.

"He's improving his English, as I am," Finkler said. "He loves to talk on the field and make his presence felt. That's what he wants to do. It's going to be interesting this season."

Finkler says that after qualifying for the top six in fourth place last season and not getting to the grand final, he and the rest of the Victory players had declared that result wasn't nearly good enough and were demanding much more of themselves this season.

"We definitely need to get better," he said. "Last season we didn't make the grand final, so this season we bought some quality players who played for the Socceroos and at a high club level overseas. It's a huge step for us and we've been working hard on our formation.

"We know that when we play for Victory we've got to be in finals and win trophies, so that is our aim for this season.

"We have to be better, from our goalie right through to our number nine. Everyone needs to push themselves to improve and be in the grand final. This season is very important for us as a club and as players."

Finkler revealed that after a discussion with coach Kevin Muscat it had been decided he should have more of a roving role this season, to ensure he is able to help provide the best service for Berisha.

"Bes is a very important player. He forces the opposition centre-backs to have to be very aware," Finkler said.

"He's going to be very good for us this season because it's like he can score for fun when he's on his game. He's been working very hard.

"We've changed the formation this season. I watch a lot of video and Kevin has been talking to me about having more freedom this season in the movement through the midfield area.

"I need to work closely with Bes and the other strikers, so it's a bit different. He's a genuine goal-scorer, so it's very important that I get into a good position to assist him. I want to make his job a bit easier - that's a big part of my job on the field.

"I'm happy to help the team any way I can. If it means having more freedom, that's fine, but it doesn't matter either way to me. I just want to be on the park and playing and helping the team to win trophies."

Finkler will again be a major threat to the opposition with his free kicks from just outside the penalty box. He has an uncanny knack of putting the ball in from them and the opposition goalkeeper is on high alert whenever he lines one up.

"I practice them a lot," Finkler said. "Not every session, but certainly every week. I read some statistics that in the EPL 30 per cent of the goals are from free kicks or corners.

"We need to get better on that and make sure we give ourselves every chance of scoring from set plays.

"I visualise the ball going in from free kicks. If you work hard on it at training and get good results there, then the confidence is high in games."

Victory will go to Canberra to play local side Tuggeranong United in Round of 16 FFA Cup game on Tuesday. Finkler said that while it is important to know something about the opposition, it is more important for Victory to be focused on its game.

"It's going to be an interesting game," he said. "We will have a lot of respect for them, but we have to work on our own approach before we take into account the team we're playing against.

"I'm sure the coaching staff will have some video of them to help us get ready for them and play some great football."