A-League Men: Perth Glory midfielder Nicholas Pennington and star imports to miss Melbourne City match

Perth Glory are already putting out fires on the injury and fitness fronts just one match into the season, with Nicholas Pennington the latest player to miss Saturday’s visit to Melbourne City. Coach David Zdrilic also confirmed imports Tom Lawrence and Luke Amos are still not yet fit enough, although he hinted star signing Lawrence was in line to make his debut next week. And a week after first-choice goalkeeper Mark Birighitti was ruled out, back-up Cameron Cook is now set for a lengthy stint on the sideline after hurting his knee in the warm-up before Perth’s 2-2 draw with Wellington Phoenix. While returning midfielder Callum Timmins has been cleared to play after missing the Wellington game, Pennington will not travel to Melbourne after picking up a minor knock in his 28-minute appearance. It comes after wing-back Sam Sutton suffered a knee injury in their last pre-season game, while young defender Zach Lisolajski is working his way back from a hamstring issue. Amos is still returning to full fitness after battling injuries through pre-season, while Zdrilic expected Lawrence — who only arrived in Perth a fortnight ago — would be in contention to face Melbourne Victory at home next Friday. “Everyone’s different; it depends on what fitness base they come in on. He looks very good and comfortable and fit, he’s got the quality, you see that in training,” Zdrilic said of Lawrence. “He’s had a full week of training with us. That’s a really good indication for us, and then it’ll just come down to when we feel he’s ready to come on, firstly off the bench, and how many minutes we can give him, and then go from there. “But it’s just really good to have him here and his training with us. You can see the quality he has, and we can’t wait to get him into the squad.” There’s less positive news for Cook after the goalkeeper went down pre-game against Wellington and looked distressed in the hands of trainers. With Birighitti also out with a knee issue, Zdrilic said the recent short-term signing of shot-stopper Matt Sutton took on extra importance. “We’re not exactly sure of the exact time frame, but we’re looking around six weeks to a couple of months. It’s not going to be coming back in the next few weeks, put it that way,” he said. Joel Anasmo has also been ruled out through an Achilles injury, while exciting young attackers Arion Sulemani, Adam Bugarija, and Khoa Ngo have all been added to the squad. After conceding more than 70 per cent of possession at home to Wellington, Zdrilic said facing another ball-dominant team in Melbourne City this weekend presented a different challenge. “The Wellington game is a very different game, and I think you’ll see that with more games that they play, if they continue to play that high line, no other team is doing that,” he said. “This game, another high-pressing team, but different. They’re good on the ball, they’re good at pressing, that’s why they’re champions. “They have varied their press infrastructure a little bit, even the (AFC Champions League) game against Buriram United the other day, they press with a back five and went man on man to match up. “They’ve got a very good structure, they’re good with the ball, a very physical team, and powerful.”