No parting of ways for Paartalu

Sydney, NSW 3 March 2012: Leading Hyundai A-League mid-field player Erik Paartalu has turned down a substantial six figure offer from Chinese Super League club Guangzhou R&F FC to remain under the tutorledge and guidance of Ange Postecoglou at the Brisbane Roar FC. This comes on the back of another equally lucrative approach from K-League giants Suwon Samsung Blue Wings almost a year to the day 12 months ago.

Commenting on the decision yesterday, Brisbane Roar Head Coach Ange Postecoglou said, “At a time when A-League players are jumping at the chance to make this sort of money, Erik has shown faith in himself, the A-League, his club and his team mates by staying put in Australia to continue his professional development. It also says a lot about Erik’s integrity, not only as a player but as a person.”

Since signing with Brisbane in 2010, Paartalu has quickly become a linchpin in the Roar’s midfield. He has played 56 consecutive games and scored some crucial goals including the ‘2010-2011 A-League Goal of the Season’ and the equaliser in the dying seconds of extra time in last years grand final. He has become renowned for his defensive midfield skills, leadership qualities and passing accuracy and is now realising one of his greatest ambitions having just been selected for the ‘Qantas Socceroos’ in the recent FIFA 2014 World Cup qualifier match against Saudi Arabia.

Erik Paartalu said, “Turning down this offer from a financial perspective was not easy, but I’m in a good place mentally at the moment where my game is reaching a new level. Every day I’m learning something new from Ange (Postecoglou) and the boys in Brisbane and I have played overseas before, so for the moment, I don’t feel any burning desire to repeat the experience. I’m taking a long term view of my career development and, with the recent call up from Holger Oseick to the Socceroos, obviously influencing things, my view is that the timing is not quite right for a move abroad.”

Commenting on Erik’s decision, FFI’s Managing Director David O’Keefe said “Obviously, the sort of money being offered would be appealing to most players in the A-League; however Erik knows he’s still developing as a footballer and in our opinion that development progress wasn’t going to accelerate much more with him moving to the Chinese Super League. If you look at the big picture, Erik has just had his first call up to the national team and continues to grow as a player at Brisbane Roar FC, so who’s to say a bigger & better offer won’t come in from Japan or Europe somewhere down the track in the future if he continues to perform as well as he has during the past 18 months”.

ENDS

EDITORS NOTE

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