An AAMI Park crowd of 20 097 saw Victory return to form with a comprehensive 2-0 dismantling of the disappointing Wanderers.
After suffering a heavy 5-0 defeat away to Brisbane Roar as well as a disappointing 1-1 draw at home against Newcastle Jets in the last two weeks, Victory sparked back to life with a win over the Wanderers in a crucial result for their finals aspirations.
A double from classy midfielder Oliver Bozanic was enough for Victory to see off the Wanderers, but it was their defensive work rate that was the most impressive aspect of the win.
Bozanic opened the scoring in just the third minute with a low venomous drive that crept under the outstretched arms of keeper Liam Reddy, and doubled the score in the 66th minute with a superb low toe-poke finish.
Victory can perhaps consider themselves extremely fortunate that they were not forced to play the second half with just ten men, as Daniel Georgievski escaped a red card with a bone-crunching high tackle that raked the knee of Mitch Nichols.
Referee Strebre Delovski showed an astonishing level of lenience by only producing a yellow card for Georgievski.
The result leaves Victory 6 points clear of seventh-placed Sydney FC in the race for the finals, and will give them a much-needed boost.
Their performance shows that no team will want to face them in the finals, and their front four of Besart Berisha, Kosta Barbarouses, Fahid Ben Khalfallah and Gui Finkler are a constant threat for any opposition defence.
Kevin Muscat gets response from players
Sustained early pressure from the Victory saw the Wanderers under siege early, as the men in blue constantly corralled and harassed the visitors whenever they were in possession. They could well have had a penalty in the second minute, when Ben Khalfallah went down after a hashed clearance by Nikolai Topor-Stanley and the pressure paid early dividends when Bozanic found the back of the net a minute later.
This defensive work rate and heavy pressing was in stark contrast to the last couple of Victory performances, and it was just the kind of response Kevin Muscat demanded from his players. The determination shown by the front four of Berisha, Khalfallah, Barbarouses and Finkler to close down the opposition and not allow any easy possession was particularly impressive.
Wanderers continue to struggle in final third
After 31 shots on goal in the last two rounds for only one goal, the Wanderers were desperately looking to improve their finishing this week and take their opportunities. Mark Bridge has had an exceptional season used as a makeshift striker and Mitch Nichols has been a scoring outlet from attacking midfield, but goals for both have dried up in recent weeks.
The Wanderers won the duel in terms of possession, but lacked any precision in the final third despite again having multiple opportunities. Their lack of a key marksman up front will be a serious worry for Tony Popovic with finals less than a month away, and they will be desperately looking to find the back of the net during the final two rounds to rekindle their goal-scoring form.
Georgievski lucky to remain on the park
Georgievski recklessly flew into a high tackle on Mitch Nichols and was extremely lucky to escape with only a yellow card. It looked a blatant red card – studs were showing and he made contact above Nichols’ knee – and he can count himself very fortunate not to be given his marching orders.
Luckily Nichols managed to escape any serious injury, and the fact he picked himself up straight away could have been a saving grace for Georgievski. Referee Delovski was very lenient with his decision, and Twitter exploded with bewildered fans wondering how Georgievski was allowed to stay on the pitch.
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