New Sydney FC boss Patrick Kisnorbo believes he was unfairly criticised following his controversial exit from Melbourne Victory in 2025 but says he has nothing to prove in returning to the Isuzu UTE A-League.
Kisnorbo was appointed on a short-term deal until the end of the season after the Sky Blues axed former Head Coach Ufuk Talay, who has since gone on to sign a two-year deal with arch-rivals Western Sydney Wanderers.
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A two-time Premiership winner and Championship winning coach during his time at Melbourne City, Kisnorbo has been out of work since he was dismissed as Head Coach of J1 League side Yokohama F Marinos in 2025.
The 45-year-old initially joined Yokohama as number two to former England assistant Steve Holland before eventually taking sole charge of the side following Holland’s departure.
However the nature of Kisnorbo’s move to Japan – a move which saw him leave Victory after overseeing just eight games in charge of the club – saw the former Socceroo receive widespread criticism from the Victory fanbase, criticism he believes was unjust.
“When I first left, well, when this opportunity came to go to Japan, Yokohama contacted the club,” said Kisnorbo when addressing the media for the first time since taking charge of Sydney FC.
“And then once that happened, you know, I spoke to the hierarchy (at Melbourne Victory) you know, because if I didn’t get their blessing in terms of taking an opportunity, I wouldn’t have gone.
“I know a lot of people there that are friends to this day, so once they sort of told me, ‘Listen, I think it’s a great opportunity’ then it’s hard to let go.
“What happened after that is disappointing, because, you know, they’re the ones that said I just left and then this and that.
He continued: “Also, the club got a fee for me, so financially I looked after, not myself, but they got compensated. So I just didn’t leave, because it just came from me. This was a well thought sort of decision.
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“At the start, you know, I didn’t want to go. Honestly, I didn’t want to go because we were doing well at the time. But you know, when you speak to a few people within the club, great friends that you hold their opinion highly and when they say what they want to say, you sort of do what you must do.”
Asked if he feels as though he now has a reputation to rebuild, Kisnorbo was adamant he has nothing to prove in returning to the Isuzu UTE A-League.
“What I need to prove is that I’m a good person within the club. Everything else is irrelevant for me,” said Kisnorbo, when speaking on Tuesday morning at the club’s Sky Park training centre.
“The human factor and being a good guy around the training ground, meeting new staff, new players, new members, new people. For me, that’s the most important. The football is second, it’s how I portray myself as a person.
He went on to say: “I don’t think I was desperate (to get back into football) because I did knock back a few jobs, a few opportunities.
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“So now it’s sort of trying to pick the right one that you think that you could benefit and make the club benefit. And this opportunity came sort of last minute with the club, and I thought it was a perfect way to come to a club where ambition is high, but also to try and do something that club hasn’t done before at this stage. So I think it’s a good opportunity.”
Ben Garuccio of Sydney FC
Kisnorbo has been busy putting his new side through their paces since joining the club, with the first of their four remaining league matches coming against Brisbane Roar on Thursday night.
“We’ve worked hard, that’s just part and parcel of it,” smiled defender Ben Garuccio when asked about Kisnorbo’s notorious fitness methods.
“I think PK is always one that you know, when you’re working under him, he makes it very clear that those are the bare minimum standards.
“I think that’s very important to have those bare minimum standards, because when you go out on the weekend, you know exactly what to expect and what’s expected of you as a player.
“So it’s been good. It’s been a little bit different, but we’ve worked hard this week, and I think the boys are feeling really good.”
A teammate of Kisnorbo’s during his playing days at Melbourne City, Garuccio then went on to win the Isuzu UTE A-League Premiership/Championship double under Kisnorbo as a coach in 2020-21.
Patrick Kisnorbo poses with the A-League Trophy
“I don’t think he’ll ever change, to be honest. I think he’s very straight down the line. You know what to expect,” added Garuccio when asked about the difference between Kisnorbo the player and Kisnorbo the coach.
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“And I think as a player, it’s good because you know, when you’re out of line, you’ll be told straight away. And I think as long as that remains the same for every single player, and I think that’s another good trait of his is that doesn’t matter who it is, whether it’s a senior player, a young player, he’ll tell you the exact same thing.
“So I think the consistency is great. Everyone knows that. Once you’re out of line, you already know you’re out of line before you get told, which is very important. So, yeah, he’s the exact same.”
