Wellington Phoenix coach Giancarlo Italiano says that if you'd told him at the start of the season his side would have been topping the A-League Men table after 11 games, he'd have thought you were mad.
But now the Phoenix have defied all his expectations, he reckons it's crucial his high flyers remain focused and don't look too far ahead after the point that keeps them in pole position.
The nailbiting 2-2 draw at Adelaide United keeps Wellington one point clear of second-placed Melbourne Victory, who play on Saturday.
Kosta Barbarouses twice gave his side the lead, scoring either side of halftime, but the Reds managed to equalise twice to claim a share of the points on Thursday night.
There were numerous chances for both sides in the thrilling encounter, with the Phoenix producing a fine display as they almost snatched an injury-time winner when Nick Pennington's header bounced out off the post.
"We don't get too far ahead," Italiano said.
"My job is to instil in the group that they can play a certain way and that the performance overall is more important than the actual result.
"And if we keep doing the things that we're doing, I believe that we can have a good season.
"For me, the hard thing now is managing those expectations that are more of a distraction than anything else and keeping the group grounded.
"I'm learning myself. This is my first year as an A-League coach and I feel as though these things are also new to me, but luckily I've had 14, 15 years of coaching experience that guides me through."
Italiano joined the Phoenix for 2018-19 season as the team's head analyst and Ufuk Talay's second assistant coach, before being promoted to main assistant in the 2020-21 season.
Following Talay's decision to move on from Wellington at the end of the last campaign, Italiano was appointed to his maiden head coach role.
When quizzed if, before the start of the season, he thought the Phoenix would be sitting top of the table after 11 games and playing such an impressive brand of football in his debut season, Italiano laughed at the idea.
"I would have thought you were mad," he said.
"I said from day one I felt as though the pre-season predictions were disrespectful to the group that had already performed.
"Even if a majority of the boys from this group last year maybe didn't have a significant amount of game time last year, the quality is there.
"For me, it was more about gelling and getting the group back and giving them belief and I didn't know where the ceiling was with this group.
"Never did I ever think I was aiming for number one; I just wanted to be the best team that we can and wherever the cards fall, they fall."
