South Melbourne has upped the ante in its bid to win one of the first licenses when the A-League expands by saying it has targeted Brazilian soccer legend Roberto Carlos to become its coach if the club gets the go ahead to joint the competition.
While the Dandenong and Geelong groups who are also reportedly keen to enter the race have kept relatively quiet about their plans and finances, South has been making it crystal clear to FFA boss David Gallop and the soccer world that the old NSL powerhouse believes it is now ready to try to challenge the new elites of the A-League if it is given the chance.
Many will see South's latest relevation as a PR stunt - the club says it is also talking to former Spanish international and Real Madrid defender Chendo about a coaching role at Lakeside - but Bill Papastergiadis, the Melbourne lawyer fronting South's bid, is deadly serious about the club's plan.
"We have commenced negotiations with Roberto Carlos as coach and Chendo as technical director. If South succeeds in entering the A-League both have expressed a desire to join the club," Papastergiadis said in a statement.
"I met with Chendo at Real Madrid headquarters in September 2016 and spoke with him at length. He was very interested in a technical development role at SMFC.
"He said to me "I know of SMFC and I would love the challenge of working with a club of that standing. It is the Oceania club of the Century. The Real juniors play against SMFC juniors. South has excellent junior players. I could implement a whole club training program from the seven-year-olds to the seniors. It would be a great challenge and experience for me work with SMFC."
The former defender still works for the club with whom he won seven La Liga titles as well as the Champions League in the late 1990s.
Roberto Carlos is the legendary Brazilian left back who stunned goalkeepers with long range shots, particularly from free kicks.
He also played for the Spanish giants and won everything there is to win in the game, from the World Cup down when he was a part of the successful Brazilian team that took the trophy in Korea/Japan 2002.
He has had a peripatetic and short career as a coach, spending time in Russia, Turkey and India with Anzhi Makhachkala, Sivasspor, Akhisar Belediyespor and Delhi Dynamos.
The South Melbourne statement said: "We have also commenced negotiations with Roberto Carlos as coach. Roberto has also said he would be interested in coaching South.
"South should be the next A-League club. It has the best football facilities in Australia, the best junior development program, set the attendance records in the previous NSL and now has people with the best international qualifications wanting to lead the club," Papastergiadis added.
"The FFA need to allow clubs that excel to be a part of the future of football in Australia. This can only be a good thing for football"