He left it late, but Markus Babbel has finally decided to show his hand. With his future as Western Sydney Wanderers coach coming under scrutiny, the German is poised to go all-in in an attempt to show what he brings to the club. What transpires against Perth Glory on Saturday could determine whether that's worthy of him remaining in charge.

A season-and-a-half of average results and meek performances are testing the patience of Babbel's employers. He cannot point to one product out of the club's prized youth academy and, most concerning, his teams have not exhibited a clear playing philosophy, style or structure. Saturday night could see that start to change - but it required his future being called into question amid whispers of player dissatisfaction to get to this point.

Changed man: Markus Babbel has taken charge of training with his job now in question. Credit:AAP

In the past three weeks, Babbel has changed tack on the training ground. Before that, Babbel's style on the training ground since arriving at the Wanderers in May last year has been largely observational - an old-school manager's approach that left assistant Jean Paul de Marigny and Labinot Haliti with the responsibility of leading sessions.

Babbel, a larger than life character, was rendered a virtual bystander at the club's Rooty Hill training ground. A man players describe as a great man-manager takes on a silent figure while his assistants patrol the pitch barking aggressively at the players, who are rote-taught drills.