For a brief three minutes it appeared the romance of the cup was on for young and old, as Tim Cahill pandemonium reached fever pitch. Former NSL champions Brisbane Strikers provided an engrossing contest in front of a damp but excited Perry Park crowd, as City progressed to the next round of the FFA Cup 2-1.
Taking a shock 1-0 advantage from a set piece opportunity, Strikers defender Greg Henslee went from hero to villain as his header was cancelled out minutes later courtesy of a Bruno Fornaroli penalty.
Against the run of play, Bruce Kamau was taken down in the 77th minute to allow Fornaroli to score a brace from the spot. The A-League outfit will thank their lucky stars they edged out a committed Queensland State League team, getting through thanks to two very agricultural challenges in the box, both that were stonewall penalties.
78' GOAL! Fornaroli makes it 2-0 from the penalty spot in #STRvMCY #FFACup live: https://t.co/EOuIirzwg6 pic.twitter.com/CIIJ94TX5r
— FOX SPORTS Football (@FOXFootballLive) August 24, 2016
Cahill makes a modest start to life at City
Admitting directly after the match that he needed minutes in the legs, Tim Cahill got through 30 minutes of football to make his debut for the club in front of 3,500 delighted football supporters. The veteran forward came on as a substitute shortly after the hour mark to slot into the number 10 position.
City enjoyed 72% of the ball and while crosses were whipped in from the fullbacks in the first half, they crossed less frequently in the second stanza, which was a surprise given Cahill’s prowess in the air. The manager has a decision to make where the star forward will fit into his tactical plans, as new skipper Bruno Fornaroli reminded everybody of his class and efficiency in the final third.
The much anticipated moment as @Tim_Cahill makes his @MelbourneCity debut in the @FFACup ! #STRvMCY #FFACup pic.twitter.com/eQLiSx2rY4
— Dion Fountas (@DionFountas) August 24, 2016
City defence hopelessly unprepared
Credit to the Brisbane Strikers for putting the visitors under the pump via their 5-3-2 formation, but Melbourne City should be expecting far better from their centre-half pairing of Connor Chapman and Osama Malik. Both players were guilty of playing at a slow tempo out from the back and were found wanting when giant defender – and tree lopper by trade – Greg Henslee was left completely unmarked to put the home side ahead in the first half.
Time and time again City were exposed with simple long balls dinked over the back. If a collection of semi professionals can make life this uncomfortable, how will that translate to the A-League? Hogging possession is intended to limit the opposition’s chances on target, somehow the Strikers found a way to remain consistently dangerous.
Mooy loss could be bigger than Cahill gain
The midfield dynamic simply didn’t click as well as it should have, considering the names on paper. John van’t Schip has a plethora of talent on his books, yet the three players in the middle of the park – Luke Brattan, Neil Kilkenny and Adrian Caceres – did not give off the impression they will become a great trio. During the call, John Kosmina floated the idea of dropping Bruno Fornaroli into the number 10 role behind Cahill in a 4-2-3-1 formation – given the performance on Wednesday night against the Strikers, that may not be the craziest idea.
Brattan’s distribution is healthy, Kilkenny provides a lot of industry and Caceres blows hot and cold with fleeting moments of inspiration. Unless the latter can find some consistency, then he could make way for the Socceroos legend. For all the headlines and excitement over Cahill’s return, the loss of the league’s best midfielder and arguably best player in Aaron Mooy might be a void too large to replace.
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