Mateo Poljak and Iacopo La Rocca bring passion, energy to Wanderers cause Iacopo La Rocca is enjoying the challenge of his defensive midfield role. "I WOULD say he's the funniest guy in our team," Mateo Poljak says of his midfield partner Iacopo La Rocca. Together, Poljak and La Rocca man the Wanderers" engine room. It's not always the most glamorous role to fill, but it's a vital one. La Rocca is a hugely popular member of the Western Sydney squad. He goes about his job quietly, though occasionally his more fiery side emerges on the field, like when he caught Sydney FC midfielder Terry Antonis with a flailing elbow two seasons ago and earned himself a red card. La Rocca and Antonis will come face to face again on Saturday in Parramatta for the second Sydney derby of the season. "He's very passionate - like most Italians," Poljak said of his teammate. I would say he's the funniest guy in our team and I've never heard a bad word about him. He's very positive and I really enjoy playing with him. I really think he's experienced and he brings that stability to our team. He's a hard worker and a very smart player. La Rocca, 30, started his youth career at Lazio and arrived at Western Sydney two years ago as a defender, but Tony Popovic transformed the Italian into a defensive midfielder. It's a difficult position, La Rocca admits, but he enjoys the challenge. And playing alongside Poljak, who has also been at the Wanderers since its inception, has become second nature to him. "We are here from the first year and now we know each other very well," La Rocca said. We play in a difficult position because defensive midfielder you have to run a lot and sometimes the people don't understand how we work. But if we keep the structure we will do a great job. We are in the middle, we have to support the defenders and the strikers and sometimes we also have to go right or left. It's difficult, but we know here everyone has to run. It's the kind of position that doesn't always give the players in it the recognition they deserve. But that doesn't concern Poljak, who says sometimes it's better to do the hard work behind the scenes. "We don't crave attention," Poljak said. You know it's your job and you have to do it. Sometimes it's ugly, but you know you're available for the team and I think the most important thing is the coach knows and understands that. While Poljak and La Rocca have already conquered Asia, they have had to adjust their game from a defensive style to a more attacking brand to better suit the A-League. After four losses and two draws, there is pressure on the Wanderers to pick up their first three points of the season. It won't be easy against the unbeaten Sky Blues, La Rocca admits, but the champions of Asia haven't had their confidence knocked. "They have good players, they are in a better position than us and they are doing well," La Rocca said. They have confidence, but we are confident too because we are the best in Asia. We know what we can do and I think when we win the first game it will all change. Originally published as Wanderers engine room happy to stay low key