A-League Week 4 Preview
Brisbane Roar v Adelaide UnitedSuncorp Stadium
Friday 28th October 2011.
It is a reflection of the incredibly high standards now demanded at Brisbane Roar that coach Ange Postecoglou claimed to be disappointed by his side’s performance in last week’s 3-0 win over Gold Coast.
The men in orange were certainly not at their best and were fortunate not to go in trailing at the break, but they still ultimately won at a canter and that does not bode well for those sides eyeing the Queenslanders’ title.
Adelaide United certainly fit into that challenger category, but they have struggled to find any consistency thus far this term, sandwiching their impressive win over Melbourne Victory between disappointing defeats against Perth and Sydney.
It’s therefore difficult to make a case for the Reds becoming the side to end Roar’s amazing 31-game unbeaten streak and it becomes even harder when you consider that Bruce Djite, Zenon Caravella and Milan Susak are all struggling to be fit for the Suncorp clash.
On a brighter note for the Reds, Ukrainian midfielder Evgeniy Levchenko should be available after overcoming the calf strain that forced him to miss last week’s defeat against Sydney and Rini Coolen’s men will also be heartened by the fact that they have lost just once in nine trips to Brisbane and did manage to pick up a point there last season.
As for the home side, Postecoglou is not expected to tinker with his starting eleven, although his squad options could be boosted by the expected return of Matt Mundy and Rocky Visconte who have all but recovered from their respective knee and hamstring problems.
Massimo Murdocca and Kofi Danning are again likely to be named on the bench despite impressing when thrown into the fray during the second-half of the Gold Coast game and the same applies to defender Mohamed Adnan.
It will be an interesting night in the dugout for Roar assistant coach Rado Vidosic, meanwhile, given that his son Dario will be lining up for the Reds and it should be Vidosic senior who emerges with the family bragging rights.
Prediction: Brisbane Roar 2-1 Adelaide United
Central Coast Mariners v Perth GloryBluetongue Stadium
Saturday 29th October 2011.
It would have taken a brave punter to back Central Coast Mariners to be propping up the A-League ladder after three rounds and yet that is exactly where last season’s beaten Grand Finalists find themselves heading into Saturday’s home clash with Perth Glory.
Could it be that the men from Gosford simply can’t cope with being among the favourites to topple Brisbane from their throne having traditionally revelled in the role of underdogs?
That certainly seems to be the case as Graham Arnold’s men have looked sluggish and disjointed throughout the campaign thus far, picking up just one point from a possible nine.
The former Socceroos coach may well opt to shake his side up this week, with Alex Wilkinson expected to return after recovering from a broken arm and both Bernie Ibini-Isei and Troy Hearfield likely to join the club skipper in the starting eleven.
Midfield talisman Mustafa Amini may be fit enough to make his first appearance of the season off the bench, Stuart Musialik will come back into the selection frame if he manages to shake off a nagging adductor injury and the likes of Adriano Pellegrino, Michael Baird and Daniel McBreen will all be keen to impress against their former club.
Glory, in contrast, have got off to an absolute flier and are currently only being denied outright top spot by Brisbane’s superior goal difference.
Ian Ferguson’s men weren’t at their best against Wellington last time out, but they still managed to grind out a win and will consequently be quietly confident of claiming what would remarkably be their first ever victory at Bluetongue Stadium.
The West Australians are set to be unchanged for the Gosford clash, meaning that the likes of Mile Sterjovski, Adam Hughes and Evan Berger will again be left cooling their heels with the youth team.
On the injury front, meanwhile, Glory are travelling pretty well with reserve goalkeeper Neil Young the only notable absentee as he continues his recovery from abdominal surgery.
Marquee striker Shane Smeltz will be looking to add to his impressive tally of three goals from the last two games and coach Ferguson would of course love to put one over on one of his former clubs.
Glory showed at Melbourne Heart a fortnight ago that they are capable of winning on the road, but historically Gosford has been a graveyard for their ambitions.
And although the hosts are struggling, they are still capable of snaring a share of the spoils.
Prediction: Central Coast Mariners 1-1 Perth Glory
Melbourne Heart v Sydney FC
AAMI Park
Saturday 29th October 2011.
Despite showing a significant level of improvement in their 0-0 derby draw with Victory last weekend, Melbourne Heart remain one place off the foot of the ladder and face another stern test on Saturday in the form of Sydney FC.
While disappointed not to have taken three points from a game in which they created the better chances, Heart coach John van’t Schip could at least take some comfort from seeing his side earn their first clean sheet of the campaign.
With Clint Bolton back in goal, Simon Colosimo returning to the heart of the defence and Matt Thompson restored to his preferred midfield role, the Victorian side looked far more balanced and organised than they had in their previous two outings and once the likes of Alex Terra, Mate Dugandzic and David Williams start to click in the final third, they should move away from the foot of the table.
Coolen could also receive some welcome news ahead of the AAMI Park clash with key midfielder Fred reportedly close to making a full recovery from his hamstring injury.
Rangy young striker Eli Babalj, meanwhile, is expected to shake off a knee problem and come back into the selection equation if not for the Sydney game, then possibly for the Round 5 trip to Adelaide.
Long-term absentees Adrian Zahra, Kliment Taseki and Kamal Ibrahim, however, remain sidelined.
As for Sydney FC, they gave their supporters plenty of cause for optimism with their win at Adelaide last time out and coach Vitezslav Lavicka will have been especially pleased to see Nicky Carle produce a stand-out performance.
The former Crystal Palace midfielder has been decidedly hit and miss since returning to Australia last year, but signs are just starting to emerge that he could be set to forge a very productive partnership with Terry Antonis and Brett Emerton.
The visitors do still perhaps lack a top quality finisher, hence their ongoing pursuit of Joel Griffiths, but they do have Mark Bridge back from suspension this week and he may well come straight back into the starting eleven at the expense of the willing but limited Bruno Cazarine.
Shannon Cole should also be available for the trip south after shaking off a calf strain.
Buoyed by last week’s impressive victory at Hindmarsh Stadium, the Sky Blues will fancy their chances of rolling a Heart side who have failed turn AAMI Park into anything even resembling a fortress since entering the competition last year, but van’t Schip’s men are capable of frustrating them and claiming another point.
Prediction: Melbourne Heart 1-1 Sydney FC
Gold Coast United v Newcastle JetsSkilled Park
Sunday 30th October 2011.
While Gold Coast United may not have been quite as poor this season as many pundits predicted they might be, they have still only managed to secure two points from their three games and are languishing close to the foot of the ladder.
Next up for Miron Bleiberg’s men is a home clash with Newcastle Jets who were also written off by many before the season got underway but have subsequently managed to pick up six points.
Gary Van Egmond will take charge of the visitors for the first time since returning for his second spell at the club and it will be interesting to see what changes, if any, he makes to the side that caretaker coach Craig Deans led to victory in last week’s derby against Central Coast.
With the club having made its best ever start to an A-League season, all the key players fully fit and a game against a struggling side first up, it’s not a bad situation for the new boss to be walking into.
And the Jets could also have another weaponry in their armoury on Sunday with Francis Jeffers having returned to Ausgrid Stadium after a successful guest stint at the club last term.
The former England man is reportedly fit and raring to go and will be included in the matchday squad if his international clearance comes through in time.
For the Queenslanders, meanwhile, Kristian Rees may well get the nod to start at centre-back and the wily Joel Porter could be preferred to the more ponderous Dylan McAllister up front.
Anderson is also expected to earn a promotion from the bench as United look to maintain an impressive home record against the Jets who have claimed just one point from their four visits to Skilled Park.
One man who will definitely miss the Jets clash, however, is promising young midfielder Josh Brilliante who has been called up for international duty with the Young Socceroos.
United goalkeeper Glen Moss has labelled this a must-win game for his side and although that may be a touch dramatic at this early stage of the season, the hosts do need to get some victories on the board in a hurry if they are to threaten the top six.
While the Jets have the momentum and the form, they may find themselves having to settle for a point.
Prediction: Gold Coast United 0-0 Newcastle Jets
Wellington Phoenix v Melbourne VictoryWestpac Stadium
Sunday 30th October 2011.
Can an A-League coach really be under serious pressure with the season only three games old?
The answer appears to be yes in the case of Melbourne Victory’s Mehmet Durakovic.
The wealth of attacking talent collected by Durakovic in the Victorian capital is yet to produce a single goal in 180 minutes of football and the natives are growing increasingly restless.
Seemingly unable to find the correct blend and balance, the Victory coach has already been pilloried in certain sections of the media and should his side fail to both break both their goal drought and secure a positive result against Wellington Phoenix on Sunday, the clamour for a change at the top will grow ever louder.
Durakovic will surely re-jig his starting eleven yet again following their woeful display in last week’s derby clash with Heart and that could mean a return for the previously out-of-favour Danny Allsopp.
Jean Carlos Solorzano and Carlos Hernandez, meanwhile, may earn promotions from the bench, but where Harry Kewell and Archie Thompson will line up remains anyone’s guess.
Billy Celeski is set to come back into midfield and Adrian Leijer will resume his central defensive partnership with Roddy Vargas having missed the derby through suspension.
While Durakovic is feeling the heat at Victory, Ricki Herbert continues to feel the love at the Phoenix.
Despite being without a raft of key players due to injury and suspension, the Kiwi outfit continue to play attractive football and were a touch unfortunate not to have picked up at least a point from last week’s long trip to Perth.
Unfortunately for the home side, Manny Muscat saw red in the latter stages of that defeat at nib Stadium and will subsequently be unavailable for Sunday, joining injured trio Vince Lia, Lucas Pantelis and Mirjan Pavlovic on the sidelines.
Paul Ifill, meanwhile, faces a race against time to be fit to face Victory, but Tim Brown will return from suspension and Mark Paston will be fit enough to regain the gloves if Herbert opts to drop Tony Warner.
Like the Mariners, Phoenix seem to delight in flying under the radar and they will be only too happy to let Victory dominate the headlines in the build-up to the Westpac Stadium clash.
That said, they do lack a cutting edge without Ifill in their ranks and if the Englishman misses out again on Sunday, it’s hard to see them breaking down a pretty resolute Victory defence.
Not many sides head across the ditch and win, but Victory are desperate and that may be just enough to get over the line.
Prediction: Wellington Phoenix 0-2 Melbourne Victory
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