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Brisbane Roar has today confirmed that striker Kosta Barbarouses will immediately depart the Brisbane club for Russian First Division club FC Alania Vladikavkaz.
After trialling with the club earlier this year and agreeing to terms of a contract, Barbarouses signed on with the Russian outfit for three years for an undisclosed fee.
Roar's Head Coach Ange Postecoglou realised what a massive loss the transfer would mean for Brisbane and the A-League, but remained supportive of the New Zealand international.
"We’re definitely disappointed to see Kosta leave the club, he was an important part of our team," Postecoglou said.
"I would have liked for him to stay another season to further his development.
"That was not to be, I’m sure Kosta will be a great asset to his new club and we wish him the best of luck," Postecoglou said. Postecoglou was proud of what the club had done for the young forward,
"Our club policy is to identify young talent, help them to develop their game within our team structure and enable to them to further their careers."
Despite the immediate departure, Postecoglou is confident he'll find someone in their squad to fill the gap left by Barbarouses.
“I’ve obviously known about this possibility for a little while now, so we’ve already got some things in place to find a replacement,” he said.