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Wellington Phoenix want to create a Sydney FC-like consistency in the A-League, boosted by their captain Steven Taylor's desire to see out his career in NZ.
Captain Steven Taylor has declared a desire to see out his career at Wellington Phoenix, which will be music to the ears of their ambitious A-League coach Ufuk Talay.
Moments after Talay spoke of the need to build a settled squad for future seasons if they're to match the ongoing success of a club like Sydney FC, Taylor put his hand up to stick around.
The former long-serving Newcastle United defender has only played a season and a half at the Kiwi club but has enjoyed it enough to enter extension talks.
No offer's been forthcoming but the 33-year-old Englishman said he would "love to" play out his days in Wellington and hopes others in the squad can also finalise contracts soon.
"Last year with a lot of players, they waited until the playoffs and that was probably bad timing for us. It wasn't nice when people were unsure," he said on Friday.
"The club know I want to be here but that's up to them. This place has been fantastic for me. I've absolutely loved my football here."
Minutes earlier, Talay opined that Saturday's opponents in Wellington, Sydney FC, could thank continuity for their perennial winning deeds.
The assistant coach when the Sky Blues triumphed in last season's grand final, Talay arrived in Wellington in May to find the Phoenix had retained just seven players.
He's built a competitive group who sit sixth nearing the midway point of the season, currently riding a five-game unbeaten stretch.
However, Sydney have got the jump on all their rivals, five points clear after winning their last six games.
"They're not starting from scratch in pre-season so that makes a massive difference," Talay said.
"The only way you can challenge for and win titles is if you have consistency in your playing group and obviously your footballing staff as well.
"The goal is to maintain 14-15 players for next season. Then you just add more quality to the team."
He said Sydney have done exactly that, believing the addition of the three 'Bs' - Kosta Barbarouses, Alex Baumjohann and Luke Brattan - had made them even more clinical than last season's premiers.
Sydney will arrive with the ink still drying on contract extensions signed by coach Steve Corica and accomplished players Milos Ninkovic and Michael Zullo.
The only hiccup this week has been a disrupted preparation courtesy of Sydney's heat and smoke-stained atmosphere.
"One training session was reduced in length because of smoke, having already been shifted to an early start time to escape the heat," Corica said.
"The smoke is a little bit difficult, you don't know when it's going to come. You've just got to take that into consideration and be a little bit flexible with our training program."
