Winless: Labinot Haliti during the Wanderers' loss against the Brisbane Roar. Credit:Getty Images Somehow, this exhausted side has to muster the strength to find a gear it has never found before, to take on Mexican champions Cruz Azul, the six-time kings of North America. With the Hispanic affection for La Liga obvious, the air of excitement of a Liga MX club taking on Real Madrid is being wildly anticipated in Mexico City. They're fanatically proud of their well-resourced league, one grossly underrated externally. They want to make mincemeat of Tony Popovic's side. So while the Wanderers are about to endure their fifth game in 2½ weeks – drawing three and losing one so far – and are still knee-deep in trying to save their A-League season, Cruz Azul are getting in prime condition. They flew out on Monday for the luxurious surrounds of the Costa del Sol and the resort town of Marbella to undergo a week-long preparation camp before they even set foot in Morocco, just an 90-minute flight away. A match against Spanish third-tier side CD El Palo was held on Thursday. After 44 scoreless minutes, Cruz Azul lived up to their nickname – la Maquina ("the Machine") – and romped to a 4-0 win. Ominously, gun Argentinian striker Mariano Pavone opened the scoring.

Champions of Asia: The Wanderers celebrate in Riyadh. Credit:AFP But what may surprise is that the problem currently haunting the Wanderers has also haunted the Mexicans. After winning the 2013-14 domestic Clausura (the season's opening league), they finished 13th in the Apetura (the closing) – an extraordinary fall for one of North America's most powerful clubs. "You have to turn over the page and forget what happened in the league and CONCACAF Champions League," said captain Gerardo Torrado this week. "We're excited to face this tournament and we will take it as a revenge. Thankfully, football gives these [opportunities] to you very soon." Clearly, the effort of participating in multiple tournaments is harder than the public thinks. Perhaps Adelaide United's epic 2008 run – which took them to the final – serves as a good reminder. Despite the Reds juggling both their Asian campaign and an A-League campaign that ended in a grand final defeat, in 2009-10, the lag affect kicked in: they finished dead last. What's clear is that A-League clubs, and Football Federation Australia, are still at a loss to work out how to take part in domestic and continental competitions without some kind of adverse reaction.

Perhaps we, the public, need to be more sensitive to the demands. While we're so used to watching teams in Europe play at home on Saturday and then in the Champions League or Europa League midweek, those flights are usually no more than a four to six-hour return journey. Compare that with Western Sydney, who made three return trips of about 18 to 20 hours each during the group stage, another three of similar duration during the knockout stage, and then a 40-hour return trip to Saudi Arabia for a final. When one factors in the wealth at the disposal of European teams, and their vast squad numbers, any comparison between Australia and Europe is futile. Consider that the Wanderers' domestic schedule then immediately took them to Wellington and Perth after returning from Riyadh and the picture becomes clearer. It is the schedule from hell. The Club World Cup puts the Wanderers even further behind the A-League eight-ball. Thankfully, the Asian Cup in January will give them a chance for much-needed respite but, in February, as the A-League resumes, guess what: the Asian Champions League also begins. Yet as the pressure has come from the media about the impact of the ACL and CWC, Popovic has been resolute. He isn't walking away from the prestige of international competition. "If we'd won against Brisbane then people would be saying it's good to keep the momentum going," Popovic said after Wednesday's 1-0 defeat to the Roar. "I would never say no to a World Club Championship, no matter how results are going."