As the A-League playoff race intensifies over the last two weeks of the season, Wellington Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay hopes his players won't be distracted by the imminent departures from the club - especially his own.
Talay's outfit could not finish off Brisbane Roar, as their 2-2 draw at Eden Park ended almost all hope of hosting a post-season fixture this year.
Vulnerability against the set-piece, lack of finishing and just dumb luck conspired against the Wellington side, who retained an 11-game unbeaten record at Auckland, but must now survive a scramble for the last two berths in the top six.
With two games remaining and six points on offer, seven teams are still within reach of those spots, with only bottom-of-the-table Melbourne Victory truly out of contention.
With three defeats and a draw in their last four outings, the Phoenix have gone ice cold over the past month and have now been rocked by news of major defections for next season - at a time when unity and focus are most needed.
Talay himself has confirmed he won't be back, with the club expected to announce his replacement this week.
"At the end of the day, we can't hide behind this being a distraction and that being a distraction," he said. "We're professionals, the players are professionals.
"They go out there and train and play football. If we worry about who's who and who's where, and who's the next gaffer, we've got a lot of problems.
"The players just need to be professional. We've got two games to go, we're still working hard to get into a top-six spot and the reality is, whether it's announced next week or five weeks or three months, it's irrelevant."
Talay insists his team must win at least one of their remaining games - both on the road - to clinch their progress. They have just five days to regroup before visiting Western Sydney Wanderers, then Macarthur in their final regular season outing.
"Definitely, I think we've got the squad to do it, so why not," he said.
The Phoenix have now squandered 25 competition points in games they have lost leads this season, but that could have been very different against Brisbane, if striker David Ball had enjoyed a more favourable roll of the ball.
In the second half, he had a left-foot shot hit both uprights without crossing the goal-line, then found the left upright again just seconds later, still with no addition to the score.
"If we'd found the third goal, the game would have been done and dusted," rued Talay. "The ball hits both posts, rolls across the line and doesn't go in... sometimes that's the way football is, but I think we created enough chances to win the game in the second half."
