But Danish international Poulsen, Swiss-born Basha and Austrian Dobras have been involved to a greater or lesser extent in the six games that Victory have played, the results of which have been worse than expected. Loading The traditional powerhouse has garnered only six points out of a possible 18 and lie eighth on the 11 -team league table. Toivonen is still scoring goals, but there is little invention from a midfield which appears too stolid and lacking in imagination. And without Hoogland, Victory look vulnerable at the back, with the team having conceded eight goals, only three of the 11 clubs shipping more.

''Marco has had a difficult time with injuries but there are likely to be some questions soon about possible moves in the January transfer window if things don't pick up,'' said one club source. ''We are playing solid, slow, dull football at the moment.'' Given that most quality Australian players are under contract to rival A-League clubs, that might mean having to jettison some of the foreigners to make way for others. Recruitment at Victory is overseen by a number of individuals; the coach has the final say, but input is gained from football manager Paul Trimboli. For marquee signings the board, along with chief executive Trent Jacobs, can get involved. In his defence, Kurz was in a difficult position when he moved to Victory, having helmed Adelaide for the past two seasons.

Quality midfielders Carl Valeri (retired), James Troisi and Terry Antonis, along with striker Kosta Barbarous (out of contract) had moved on, as did marquee player Keisuke Honda, leaving him with a dearth of experience and know-how in that area save for veteran Leigh Broxham. Marco Kurz may be forced to act if Victory's season continues to splutter. Credit:Getty Images Poulsen has had an excellent career at higher levels than the A-League , but there was always little upside about signing a 36-year-old who had never played in this country. Basha, who turns 33 in January, also had an excellent CV, having played in Italy's Serie A for a decade and then last season for Greek Super League club Aris Salonika. He only arrived at the start of the season, and has done enough as a holding midfielder to escape serious censure.

Dobras has a been under more scrutiny. Visa players are supposed to make the difference to an A-League squad, but last weekend, when Kurz was juggling a line-up that was badly depleted by injury and suspension, the 27-year-old attacking midfielder could not even force his way into the starting XI for the Big Blue against Sydney. Kurz has asked for patience, and there is no doubt that he will be given time to turn things round, particularly as he has had to juggle personnel problems. He has not had his best defender Hoogland – whom he would have built his defence around – at all, while Robbie Kruse, the marquee striker, has only appeared off the bench once this season, against Sydney. Socceroo frontman Andrew Nabbout is also out injured. There is every chance that Victory could put it together when it gets all those players back to full fitness.