SYDNEY FC coach Viteszlav Lavicka is poised to respond to the arrival of Brett Emerton with a more attacking style with 17-year-old prodigy Terry Antonis to be given a chance to prove he can be the team's creative spark.

After the turgid football too often served up by Sydney last season, Lavicka has been under pressure to engineer a faster and more offensive philosophy in a bid to woo back the thousands of supporters who have drifted away in the past year.

Lavicka's answer to the question of how to integrate Emerton will be revealed tomorrow when Sydney play Perth in their pre-season friendly at WIN Jubilee Oval, before the season opens a fortnight later against Melbourne Victory at Etihad Stadium and Antonis as the playmaking No 10 is under serious consideration.

Remarkably, Nicky Carle would then be pushed forward as a second striker behind Bruno Cazarine, with Emerton on the right side of a midfield diamond.

Karol Kisel would normally be a shoo-in for the left-side of midfield but will miss the start of the season with a calf injury, opening the door for Shannon Cole to continue his excellent pre-season form in an advanced position.

The alternative would be an attacking triumvirate of Emerton, Carle and Mark Bridge behind Cazarine in a 4-2-3-1 line-up, but Sydney's coaching staff believe Antonis could now be ready to make good his teenage years of rich potential.

Emerton remains very likely to miss the first game with national coach Holger Osieck set to name him in the Socceroos squad for a friendly with Malaysia the night before Victory and Sydney face-off.

Sydney's game against Perth at Kogarah kicks off at 3pm. It will be preceded by a fans' day of activities outside the stadium from 12.30pm.

Originally published as Lavicka frees up teen star