30,000 fan votes combined with opinions of an expert panel have provided the A-League All-Stars side that will compete against Manchester United at ANZ Stadium in Sydney on July 20. With United scheduling a friendly with Notts County on the same day, it is still unclear exactly which of David Moyes' squad will make the trip to Australia.
All-Stars manager Ange Postecoglou will have to make four replacements to the selected side given the retirement of Patrick Zwaanswijk, European transfers for Mat Ryan and Marco Rojas and rehabilitation for Adama Traore. The A-League players will convene in Sydney on July 13 for a week of training, at which point Postecoglou will announce his four changes.
Alessandro Del Piero's name is the biggest the A-League can produce to market to a wider audience than just those in Australia. Shinji Ono's inclusion could make the one-off match appealing for Japanese viewers, especially if Postecoglou moves Ono into the starting XI to replace Rojas. FFA was always hoping for a big television rating in scheduling such a game but with one million tuning in to see the Socceroos in World Cup qualifying, league officials will surely be hoping for a post-qualification bump. That said, only Mark Milligan and Archie Thompson actually suited up for Australia in recent weeks.
Here are the selected players, as posted by the FFA:
GK - Ante Covic (Western Sydney Wanderers)
D - Pedj Bojic (Central Coast Mariners - now with Sydney FC)
D - Nikolai Topor-Stanley (Western Sydney Wanderers
D - Patrick Zwaanswijk (Central Coast Mariners - now retired)
D - Adama Traore (Melbourne Victory)
M - Thomas Broich (Brisbane Roar)
M - Mark Milligan (Melbourne Victory)
M - Michael McGlinchey (Central Coast Mariners)
F - Alessandro Del Piero (Sydney FC)
F - Marco Rojas (Melbourne Victory - now with Stuttgart)
F - Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory)
Manager - Ange Postecoglou (Melbourne Victory)
Substitutes:
GK - Mat Ryan (Central Coast Mariners - now with Club Brugge)
D - Trent Sainsbury (Central Coast Mariners)
M - Youssouf Hersi (Western Sydney Wanderers)
M - Shinji Ono (Western Sydney Wanderers)