WESTERN Sydney Wanderers coach Tony Popovic has engaged the services of well-known agent Bernie Mandic having been inundated with coaching and commercial offers since his team’s tumultuous Asian Champions League victory.

Mandic had been working behind the scenes in recent months advising Popovic on pending contract negotiations with the Wanderers and other deals.

But since the Wanderers triumph in Riyadh, Popovic has been overwhelmed by the interest from foreign clubs, would-be sponsors and media outlets and is now directing all inquiries to Mandic.

Popovic is determined not to be distracted by commercial issues, particularly as the Wanderers face the daunting challenge of following the dramatic 0-0 draw in Riyadh with trips to Wellington and Perth as they attempt to kickstart their A-League season.

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media_camera Tony Popovic has been inundated with offers since his side’s victory.

But Popovic’s future is now a pressing concern for the Wanderers who will be desperate to keep the coach who has not merely guided the team on the field, but helped build the club that became champions of Asia in just its third year.

Popovic, in the third year of a four year deal, is believed to be keen to stay with the Wanderers if the new owners can convince him their vision matches his own ambition to make the club a perennial Asian powerhouse.

But given the 41 year-old could earn more than US$2 million after tax to coach one of the larger Asian clubs, it will also take a hefty financial investment by the Wanderers and significant commercial backing to keep him in Parramatta.

Popovic’s profile has also made him an enormous asset for the A-League which will be eager to keep him in Australia. Coincidentally, new Wanderers’ chairman Paul Lederer is a close friend of FFA boss Frank Lowy.

But negotiating the right mixture of contractual and commercial arrangements that could make Popovic the A-League’s first $1 million coach will require a delicate balancing act.

Popovic does not want to accept commercial deals that will conflict with the Wanderers current arrangements and the hands-on coach will also be eager not to compound an already heavy workload with corporate obligations.

Similarly, while Popovic could command a hefty fee for media work, he is an intensely private person and a strong part of his appeal has been his detached, almost enigmatic public persona.

Mandic was a visible presence in Riyadh where most assumed he had travelled from his base in Paris to watch four of his clients — Tomi Juric, Ante Covic, Brendan Hamill and Matthew Spiranovic — play the biggest game of their careers.

media_camera Tony Popovic is said to be keen to remain with Wanderers

However Popovic’s future was Mandic’s most pressing concern and, after the game, he was in animated discussion with the Wanderers chief executive John Tsatsimas as the team celebrated at the Australian embassy.

Mandic, who managed a string of high profile Australian players including Harry Kewell, Mark Viduka and John Aloisi, has kept a low profile since falling out with Kewell over his dealings at the Melbourne Victory.

Coincidentally, Mandic had advised Kewell leave Melbourne to play with the yet-to-be-named western Sydney team after he believed the Victory had failed to honour its initial commitments. But Kewell and wife Sheree preferred to pursue off-field opportunities in Melbourne.

While Kewell’s star quickly faded, Mandic might again have the hottest property in Australian Football in his stable as he sorts through the offers for Popovic’s services.