Melbourne Victory are ready to spoil Garang Kuol's farewell party but will have to beat Central Coast without goalkeeper Paul Izzo.
The New Year's Eve clash is Kuol's final A-League Men game before heading to Premier League club Newcastle United in January.
Victory coach Tony Popovic hoped his charges could stop Kuol enjoying a dream final appearance.
"You can see that he's a wonderful talent, has so much potential," Popovic told reporters.
"They've done a wonderful job with him at Central Coast. He's got a fantastic move overseas.
"I'm sure it will be a good crowd to support him and wish him well in his last match and that should add more to the atmosphere.
"It's something that we're looking forward to, we want to play our part and put in a top performance and try to spoil the party a little bit.
Kuol's rapid rise earned him a Socceroos debut and a ticket to the World Cup in Qatar, while his move overseas has been eagerly anticipated.
"What he's shown so far is his mindset is very good. He's a confident young man, but you can see that his feet are firmly on the ground," Popovic said.
"It looks clear to me that he has a lot of good support around him and I think that's the key.
"There are a lot of talented players out there, a lot of players with potential and very, very few make it to the very top, and very few play professionally, but he seems to be making the right steps with a very good support network, I'm sure he'll have one overseas as well.
"If he continues this way ... it's an exciting future for him and it'll be exciting to watch his progress."
Victory will turn to Matt Acton, if not Ahmad Taleb, in goals with Izzo sidelined.
"He's hurt his thumb in a challenge. So it looks like he'll be out a little while," Popovic said.
Nani was a surprise withdrawal from the 1-0 loss to Western United with hip/hamstring tightness but is back in contention as Victory chase their fourth win of the season.
"Now we have a different challenge against a team that's full of confidence at home, is exciting, Kuol's last game," Popovic said.
"It's a challenge that you expect when you're at Melbourne Victory and you know that every team is up for a battle against you and they want to get the three points against you.
"That's something that we have to deal with and we're looking forward to the challenge and know that we're going to have to earn it and play very well."
