Melbourne Victory and Suwon Bluewings have played out a drab 0-0 draw at AAMI Park on Tuesday night.
Neither team ever looked to get going and that proved to be the case as they settled for a draw in front of 7,066 fans.
Both sides struggled to break the shackles in the opening half, with neither side enjoying a truly clearcut chance. Melbourne Victory came closest through Kosta Barbarouses, whose deflected goal-bound cross was tipped over the crossbar by No Donggeon.
Victory thought they had finally broken the deadlock in the 53rd minute, but Archie Thompson’s header was correctly ruled out for offside having been found by Daniel Georgievski.
Proceedings continued to endure a sustained lull, and it was not until Barbarouses’ 84th-minute snapshot from close-range on the left-hand side that the game saw another promising opening. The Kiwi’s strike forced a smart stop once more from No.
That was effectively the final chance of the match as the points were shared. Victory now boast five points of a possible nine, while Suwon pick up a crucial away point.
Muscat delivers on Monday promise
Kevin Muscat promised changes on Monday following his team’s 5-0 thrashing against Brisbane Roar on Saturday night and the coach stayed true to his word, making six changes to the XI that started at Suncorp Stadium.
Thompson, Jesse Makarounas, Nick Ansell, Leigh Broxham, Barbarouses and Georgievski were all called upon to change Victory’s fortunes in the midst of a quick turnaround, albeit to no avail.
Blunt in attack
On just the third matchday of the ACL campaign, it became increasingly clear that neither time was willing to lose – and it showed.
Both Suwon and Victory lacked cutting edge up front with little to no risks taken. That was reflected by the stat sheet, with just two shots on target registered for the entirety of the evening.
Victory’s key undoing were poor touches as a number of decent sights on goal went begging through a loose end product.
Too long for a change?
Did Muscat wait too long to make a substitution with three points well and truly up for grabs? The Victory gaffer waited until the 80th minute to introduce Oliver Bozanic and Giancarlo Gallifuoco and the 86th to throw on speedy Connor Pain.
With the match deadlocked and a spark desperately needed, it would have been sensible for Muscat to make an early change and attempt to alter the stifled tide of a stagnating contest.
In continental football, particularly for Australian clubs in Asia, home games are a must-win. Even though a draw will still be seen as a positive result, it may have been more as an opportunity was missed.
A good point for the visitors
If home games are crucial in Asia, away games are life or death. For the visiting South Koreans, sitting bottom of Group G, a point in Melbourne is priceless as they look to build a late charge on the ACL round of 16 qualifying places.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
