Melbourne Victory midfielder James Troisi was always destined to play football.
His grandfather had played, and so had his father. A tough defender in the Italian mould of his heritage, Troisi’s father began a football academy when James was just a boy, and so his journey began.
"He was my coach too, he started an academy when I was very young and that's how I got over to Europe, with the academy,” Troisi says.
“When I was 13 or 14 I went over a few times to Europe and that's when Newcastle signed me."
Troisi spent four season with English Premier League giants Newcastle United mostly under Kevin Keegan.
He was on the bench a handful of times in the Premier League and UEFA Cup, but never made his first team bow.
Instead, first team football was on offer in Turkey.
His Newcastle team-mate, Turkish international Emre Belozoglu, encouraged him to take the plunge.
In spells at Genclerbirligi and Kayserispor, Troisi flourished, scoring 16 goals in 93 games.
Then, Italian powerhouse Juventus came knocking.
"It was a big surprise for me,” Troisi admits. “It's a big accomplishment for me to be chosen by one of the biggest clubs in the world."
He was immediately sent to Atalanta to gain first team experience, but it didn’t pan out, so next stop was Melbourne Victory on loan, where he’s scored nine league goals and at one stage topped the goalscoring charts.
“One of the big reasons to come back was (Socceroos coach, and then Melbourne Victory coach) Ange Postecoglou. Melbourne Victory is probably the biggest club in the A-League.”
“So far I’ve had a good season, and there’s the Asian Champions League which we’ve qualified for, and Ange lives here in Australia so he comes to most of our games.”
Troisi has nine Socceroos caps and one goal, but his last appearance was just over two years ago.
But he still believes he can make that plane to Brazil for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
“The most important thing for me, and the only thing I can do, is keep playing week in, week out. Stay fit, and score as man goals as I can, and we’ll see what happens after that.
“It would be fantastic. It's the biggest thing that a footballer can achieve."
Victory boss Kevin Muscat wouldn’t be drawn on whether he’ll try to keep Troisi in Melbourne beyond this season, but it sounds like there’s a chance.
"He's done very well for us, James,” says Muscat. “His situation is unique, but it's a conversation that's been had and it's a private conversation."
