Melbourne Victory host Adelaide United at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night for round eight of the A-League.
Victory enter the match off a nine day rest, after a 2-1 win over the Central Coast Mariners at AAMI Park last Thursday night. Gui Finkler’s brace helped the Melbourne side go top of the table briefly. Kevin Muscat’s men have been brilliant this past month, ever since their loss to the Jets in Newcastle, winning the FFA Cup and going undefeated in the league with victories over Wellington, Sydney and the Mariners.
Adelaide’s fortunes have been very different with the club still searching for their first win of the season. With only six goals in seven games – and their last three results containing back to back 4-2 losses and a 0-0 draw – the Reds have been nowhere near their best.
Melbourne have recently, and historically, dominated this fixture and will be looking to further add to the Reds’ misery, however, Adelaide will be fired up and desperate for the three points to alleviate some of the pressure off both the squad and coach Guillermo Amor.
Key battle – Besart Berisha v Bruce Djite
These two teams’ front men have had very different starts to the season; their fortunes are indicative of that of their clubs. Berisha has played five out of Victory’s six league games and has scored five goals, including braces against the Phoenix and the Sky Blues.
Djite was struck down with injury and missed the first three matches of the season. He returned via the bench in round four and has since started the last three games. He is yet to find the back of the net.
Both sides need their strikers to do well, the Reds more so than the Victory, but Djite and Berisha are integral to their sides’ chances of getting a result from this match.
Team news
Victory make three big inclusions into an extended squad for this match. Captain Carl Valeri, Besart Berisha and Jason Geria have all been named and are all likely to return straight to the starting lineup. Dylan Murnane, George Howard and Rashid Mahazi will either drop to the bench or be removed from the squad entirely in their place.
Adelaide will be without central defender Osama Malik, who sustained a hamstring injury. Young Jordan Elsey could be given the opportunity to play in the centre of defence with Dylan McGowan in Malik’s absence. The 21-year–old replaced Malik against Newcastle and put in a solid performance. Marcelo Carrusca may also return to the XI after a stint on the sidelines.
Head to head
These teams have met 37 time previously. Victory have won 18 while Adelaide have won 10. There have also been nine draws. Adelaide haven’t beaten Melbourne in seven games in the league, with their last triumph coming in February of the 2012-13 season. Even worse, they haven’t beaten the Victory in Melbourne since their 4-1 win since the 2010-11 campaign.
Previous meeting
These sides met in the first round of this season, playing out a 0-0 draw at Adelaide Oval.
Prediction
Adelaide have surprised people this season – and not in a good way at all. The Reds are still looking for their first win of the 2015-16 season. Alarmingly they have scored the equal least (6) goals for the campaign so far and conceded the most (15).
The Reds desperately need to kick-start their season but it seems unlikely that they will be able to do it against the Victory in Melbourne. The reigning champions are on a five game winning streak in all competitions, with three wins on the trot in the league.
Above that they have been outstanding at Etihad Stadium, the venue for Saturday’s match. They are five games undefeated at Etihad Stadium and have scored exactly three goals in all of those games, as well as keeping a clean sheet in three of them. Victory should win, and win convincingly.
Melbourne Victory 2 Adelaide United 0
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