SYDNEY FC superstar Dwight Yorke declared yesterday Sydney's inaugural season would be nothing but a failure should they fail to win the A-League title.
"Our manager (Pierre Littbarski) expects us to win each time we take to the pitch," Yorke said in the lead-up to today's semi-final against Adelaide United.
"He's a man of high standards and losing is unacceptable.
"There's an expectation from the fans and the public, because of our playing roster, so if we return with anything less [than the title] then, yeah, we could be considered failures."
Yorke laughed off any suggestion of pressure reverberating around the most lucrative playing stock in the league.
"Pressure is when you can't provide for your family," Yorke said.
"Playing football and being well paid for it isn't what I call pressure. But is there an added intensity to perform? Yes."
Yorke also said he has an underlying desire to snare the first A-League trophy and silence his many critics.
"People thought that when I left England it would be the end of me," he said.
"I was coming to a new club, a new country and people had written me off, but now here I am looking at the grand final and about to lead my country, Trinidad and Tobago, into the World Cup.
"It's without doubt the most exciting period of my career, and I'll be sure to let the critics know that it was they who made the huge mistake, especially when I'm hopefully holding the league trophy or gracing the World Cup."
Linked heavily to a three-month stint with Japan's J-League, Yorke denied he had signed any contract and also declared his loyalty to Sydney, even if they fail to claim the title.
"This Japan thing and whatever other rumours are just short-term goals to help my preparation for the World Cup," Yorke said.
"I haven't signed anything. But if I do, it's because the World Cup is 2 1/2 months after the grand final and I would be short on match practice and training.
"But it's not like I'm not going to come back. I've got another year on my contract with Sydney and a loss in the grand final doesn't change that."
The key element in Sydney's title aspirations, Yorke said he was focused on reaching the double-figure scoring mark.