Melbourne City coach John van’t Schip says the crowd can expect a very “open” game in the final round against Adelaide United on Friday night.
There are many possibilities of the final ladder positions and the Melburnians may need to resort to superstitions as two games in the final round determine their spot on the table.
City need Brisbane Roar to lose to Melbourne Victory away on Saturday night, as well as Western Sydney taking a maximum point from their trip to Wellington.
Van’t Schip’s men squandered a golden opportunity last week losing 3-2 away to Perth, top of the table at the time, even a draw would have made things easier from their perspective.
POPULAR ARTICLES
Wanderers duo: Kick-offs in final round should be simultaneous
Could simultaneous kick-offs work in the A-League’s final round?
A-League – Combined XI – Melbourne Victory vs Brisbane Roar
ACL – Player Ratings – Suwon Bluewings 1 Melbourne Victory 1
Now going up against the Reds who sit second, a draw could see them fall as low as fifth, however, a win could potentially see them snare the Premiers’ Plate, should the other teams fall.
The City boss is not predicting a cautious game to open the final round.
“Both teams need to win, maybe at a certain moment in the game, both teams are going to take more risks,” Van’t Schip said.
“It could also be a very open game and it could be full-on with the press, because of the mentality knowing the result is important.”
Despite other games deciding City’s fate, van’t Schip said the full focus was on United and admitted playing the initial game was more relaxing.
“We always have to worry about our own game. We can’t control the other games, we’ve never done that,” he said.
“It’s also not something we have to think about, for us now the easy thing is we’re playing the first game.
“The thing we have to do is win and Adelaide have to do the same. We have big chance to climb the ladder, with a bit of luck, also have results at the end of the week and that can give you something special. We all know it’s not in our hands.”
Where as the traditional final week in the league is played all simultaneously across the major competitions in Europe, van’t Schip welcomed the pressure it puts on Roar and Wanderers to perform should the Dutchmans side get a result.
“If we or Adelaide win, the pressures on the other two teams. That’s why in some countries they play the last weekend at the same time, but it’s not the case here,” he said.
“We have to make sure we get a good result and then it’s up to the other teams to do what they have to do. We made a mistake in the last game, we have to try to restore most of what we can do of that.”
Van’t Schip also confirmed left winger Michael Zullo will be out for the rest of the season with a toe injury. The 27-year-old will be out for 10 weeks, adding to a tumultuous string of injuries including an ACL which kept him out for the majority of this season.
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.
