It is the marketer’s dream, the A-League’s two biggest and most powerful clubs will lock horns on Sunday afternoon as they battle to win this season’s Grand Final.
Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC have been the competitions best two teams all season and are both deserving of a place in the grand final.
Both sides had relatively easy victories in their respective semi-finals, so expect both teams to be fresh and ready to do battle — which will make for a tasty contest. This is the traditional Big Blue, one of the original A-League rivalries and it is fair to say that both clubs dislike each other.
All three of their matches already this season have ended in draws, but there has to be a result on Sunday one way or another.
The Victory will pose an attacking threat through their ‘Fab 4’ of Besart Berisha, Kosta Barbarouses, Fahid Ben Khalfallah and Gui Finkler, who were all in devastating touch against Melbourne City last week. Add the ageless Archie Thompson to that mix off the bench and it is enough to worry any opposition defence.
On the other hand, Sydney will bring a resoluteness and defensive steel known to Graham Arnold’s teams, and its form on the road this season has typified its newfound solidity under Arnie. They themselves also have a lethal attacking arsenal, with the likes of Golden Boot winner Marc Janko, Alex Brosque, Bernie Ibini and Milos Dimitrijevic, with the latter in outstanding form of late.
AAMI Park is the venue where you can expect a rocking home crowd for the Victory. The stage is set. The teams are primed. Here we go.
Key Battle – Gui Finkler vs Mickael Tavares
When you think of the Victory, their flashy and thunderous firepower – Berisha, Khalfallah, Barbarouses and Thompson immediately comes to mind. But the man who orchestrates all of that behind the scenes is Brazillian dynamo Gui Finkler. One of the most consistent, yet underrated players in the A-League, Finkler is the barometer for the Victory. Stop him, and you most likely stop the Victory just because of his role in keeping the team ticking. Kevin Muscat’s men rely on a high-tempo, high-pressing style of play and if that slows down at all, it is most likely to fall apart in the attacking third. If Finkler is off his game, the Victory tempo falls apart and so ensuring he has limited time on the ball to orchestrate moves will be key.
This responsibility will likely rest on the shoulders of Mickael Tavares, who is no stranger to these sort of lockdown roles. He sits at the base of the Sydney midfield and will likely be the one to hold and mark Finkler. Where the Brazilian has the power to get away from him is through set-pieces, which is out of Tavares’ hands if his teammates choose to foul Victory players in dangerous areas. This is how it becomes such a difficult task in stopping Finkler, but a necessary one for Sydney’s sake.
At the same time though, Tavares locking down on Finkler releases the likes of Dimitrijevic and Ibini to get further forward and punish the Victory even on the slightest mistake. That may be the mantra against the Victory for the Sky Blues – fight fire with fire.
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Team News
Both sides will head into the clash with relatively fresh and fully fit squads at their disposal.
Scott Galloway and Jesse Makarounas have been added to the Victory squad that faced Melbourne City last week.
Melbourne Victory Expected XI (4-2-3-1): Thomas (GK); Broxham, Delpierre, Ansell, Georgievksi; Milligan, Valeri; Finkler, Khalfallah, Barbarouses; Berisha.
For Sydney, the only likely change could be the inclusion of Terry Antonis, perhaps at the expense of the more inexperienced Chris Naumoff, should Graham Arnold want to alter his system slightly. Meanwhile, Alex Gersbach and Aaron Calver have also been added to the squad.
Sydney FC Expected XI (4-2-3-1): Janjetovic (GK); Ryall, Jurman, Faty, Petkovic; Tavares, Dimitrijevic; Naumoff, Brosque, Ibini; Janko.
Head-to-Head
As mentioned, the three clashes between the two teams this season have all ended in draws.
Their three clashes ended in one goalless stalemate and two 3-3 draws, full of controversy and fire in what has made this rivalry over the years.
In 34 apperances between the two sides, the Victory have won 10 and Sydney eight, while there have been a staggering 16 draws, demonstrating just how even and competitive these games have been over the years.
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Prediction
Australian football fans are used to the unpredictable fixtures in finals football and this shapes up to be another one of those unpredictable evenings. What we can be sure about is entertainment and spice. These two sides bring a rivalry to the pitch which has delivered since day one of the A-League and they do not like each other one bit. Old foes Muscat and Arnold have their sides playing excellent football and so it promises to be a high quality affair, perhaps the best we could ever see in the A-League to date. Berisha and co at one end, Janko and co at the other, this should be a cracking affair and could even become a shootout with both managers intent on attacking. The Victory have been the best side all year and while they have failed so far to get the three points against the Sky Blues, expect that to change on the biggest stage of all.
Melbourne Victory 3 Sydney FC 2 (AET)
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