Melbourne Victory's loss could be Brisbane Roar's gain, with John Aloisi poised to steal one of the country's most prolific young strikers from under Kevin Muscat's nose.

Former Victory youth captain Joey Katebian is on trial with the Roar and will get the chance to prove he deserves an A-League contract in Friday's pre-season clash with Western Sydney on the Gold Coast.

Katebian, 20, was cut by Victory in May to pursue other opportunities despite a stunning goal-per-game scoring record at state-league level.

In 41 games for Victory's youth team in NPL Victoria over the last two years, Katebian scored 40 times - but his only taste of A-League action for the club was a few minutes off the bench against the Central Coast Mariners late last year.

Aloisi, who worked closely with Katebian during his time as a youth mentor at Victory prior to joining Brisbane, reckons he's got his hands on a potential gem.

"I know Joey well from my time at Victory," Aloisi said.

"Having played as a striker before, I can see when someone is a goalscorer. He's a natural goalscorer.

"We've got him up here for a week to see how he fits in, not so much as a player but within the squad, to see if he will suit us.

"The opportunity's there for him and it's a good opportunity."

The Roar needs a reliable back-up option to striker Jamie Maclaren, having released import frontman Jean Carlos Solorzano and the versatile Henrique during the off-season.

But Aloisi stopped short of claiming Victory had made a mistake by letting Katebian go.

"Everyone has different opinions on football, players, what they need, what they don't," he said.

"I'm sure that people will say that when we lose players it's a big mistake.

"Kevin Muscat knows what he's doing."