Melbourne Victory host Sydney FC in the final Big Blue for season 2015-16 at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
In what could well be the most important clash between these two sides this season, the teams will have to contend with their midweek Asian Champions League commitments – the Sky Blues more so than the Victory.
Currently sitting in fifth and sixth respectively on 29 points, with the Melbourne side higher only on goal difference, this clash has the potential to determine which side will play finals football and which side may just miss out.
Their less than desirable schedules, coupled with that fact that they are both only just in finals football positions and the resurgence of Perth Glory, who sit only one point behind the two teams in seventh, means there is more riding on this clash than usual.
Victory enter the game off the back of a 1-0 loss in the league to Adelaide on Friday night before a 2-1 win over Shanghai SIPG in their first ACL group stage match. Sydney, on the other hand, drew with the Wanderers in the Sydney derby on Saturday night before travelling to Japan where they lost 2-0 to Urawa Red Diamonds.
Key Battle – Matthieu Delpierre v Alex Brosque
The French defender has time and time again proven just how valuable he is not only to the Victory defence but to the side as a whole. His positioning and awareness mean he is always cool, calm and collected and his inclusion in this team is vital. Alex Brosque has only played two games in the league since returning from injury, and around 20 minutes in Japan on Wednesday night, but the captain’s influence on this team should not be underestimated. He will likely play an important role in Sydney’s attacking movements on Saturday night.
Team News
Victory will be without Jason Geria who is suspended after receiving his fifth yellow card for the season against the Reds while Kosta Barbarouses returns from a one week ban. Gui Finkler and Fahid Ben Khalfallah will be raring to go having not played midweek after they were omitted from Kevin Muscat’s ACL squad.
Sydney have a full squad available and may play a starting XI similar to that which faced the Western Sydney Wanderers. Jacques Faty and Filip Holosko are in the same position as Finkler and Khalfallah and will need to be at the top of their game.
Head to head
These sides have met 37 times with the majority of matches ending in a draw. Victory have won on 13 occasions to Sydney’s eight.
Previous Meeting
These teams last met on Australia Day with Victory coming away 1-0 winners on the day courtesy of a Matt Jurman own goal.
However, the last time these two sides met at AAMI Park was last season’s grand final in which Melbourne emphatically defeated Sydney 3-0.
Prediction
Big Blues are always important to these two teams and their fans but this match has the potential to affect these clubs chances at finals football. Hectic schedules combined with travel and squad rotations is not an easy thing to handle and it may come down to the small details in determining the result in this game.
Victory have the benefit of playing their ACL game at home, whereas Sydney have travelled to and from Japan. On top of this, Victory will be buoyed because of their midweek win, their first in all competitions since that Australia Day win over the Sky Blues; Sydney haven’t won since the round 15 Sydney derby. The absence of jetlag and the confidence from their ACL win could prove to be small advantages which tip the scales in Melbourne’s favour in this clash.
Melbourne Victory 2 Sydney FC 0
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