A-League Salary Cap Main Obstacle To Chris Coyne's Perth Glory Move

The A-League salary cap appears to be the main obstacle in Socceroo Chris Coyne’s potential return to Australia, with the Colchester United player having received “quite a few offers” to rival that put forward by the Perth Glory.

As the rules currently stand, there is a limit to the combined total of wages to able to be paid by A-League clubs, with one 'marquee' player, whose wages will not contribute to that total.

However, Perth have already designated Socceroo Mile Sterjovski as their marquee signing for this season, meaning Coyne - who would likely command higher-than-average wages upon his return from Europe - will need to take a pay cut.

The central defender has struggled to establish himself with League One outfit Colchester, despite having become the most expensive signing in their history at the beginning of last season.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Mick McCarthy ahead of a July 15 friendly with the English Premier League side, Glory boss Dave Mitchell was quoted by AAP as he spoke about the difficulties of securing Coyne’s signature.

"I think there's other interest overseas in Dubai,” Mitchell said. "We have put our offer to him and we are just waiting to see.

"It's been tight getting him in the salary cap but if he does come he's taking a significant cut in his wages for the first year, but it would be great if we get him.

"There is a feeling he wants to come back to Australia but again he's got quite a few offers and he's just weighing them up.

"The situation is he's got a lot of offers so he's got a lot of things in his head he's got to work out.

"He's committed to saying he does want to come to Perth but he's got to look at the situation, the big picture financially."

Whilst it appears that Coyne would prefer a move to Perth, where his brother Chris also plays, it might just be that the financial restrictions on the fledgling competition and the preference of national team manager Pim Verbeek for overseas-based stars could deter the defender.

However, this season has seen an unprecedented return of international stars to Australia, with the likes of current Socceroos Mile Sterjovski and Jason Culina having signed A-League contracts.

Whether the 30 year-old Coyne follows in their footsteps remains to be seen, though it could be considered a calculated risk given his own position within Verbeek’s Australia team is not assured.

The former West Ham United man is fighting for the spot alongside Lucas Neill in central defence, which has been vacated by the injured Craig Moore. One year out from the 2010 World Cup, he will need to compete with candidates that include Jade North of Incheon United, Matthew Spiranovic – Nuremberg’s rising star – and Michael Beauchamp of Aalborg.

Chris Paraskevas, Goal.com

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