Saturday’s A-League Round 1 match is between Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City. The opening kick is set to commence at 21:50 local time with the game to be played at Marvel Stadium. The away team Melbourne City are the favourites for the match. View our preview and teams for the game between Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City.
When: 21:50 | Saturday 20/10/2018
Where: Marvel Stadium
Preview:
A-League champions Melbourne Victory kickstart their Premiership defence with a baptism of fire in the fiery cauldron of the Melbourne derby against cross-city rivals Melbourne City.
The storied rivalry dates back to the old Melbourne Heart v Victory clashes from 2010/11 and Saturday’s fixture will be the 27th edition of the Melbourne derby.
Victory have won 12 of 26 derbies with City saluting in 9 and the teams drawing just 5 times.
Enigmatic Melbourne Victory striker Besart Berisha is the derby’s leading scorer with 9 goals.
In the midfield, Victory have added a pair of attacking midfielders in Ola Toivonen and Japanese international Keisuke Honda (pictured above).
The pair give Victory a star-studded midfield and their combination with the likes of Berisha will be crucial to their fortunes in this derby and for the rest of the season.
Honda, 32, offers pace and creativity and can also play on the wing or as a deep playmaker.
The experienced Japanese international, who is currently the GM and coach of the national Cambodian team, has notched 98 caps and netted 37 goals for the Samurai Blue.
After finishing third last season, Warren Joyce’s men will be hoping to go a step further this season but the loss of young gun Daniel Arzani is certainly a blow to their premiership hopes.
They’re still a quality unit and the signings of defender Ritchie De Laet and Rostyn Griffiths will add much needed experience to a young and talented squad.
Up forward, Bruno Fornaroli is one of the most dangerous strikers in the A-League and he’ll pose a major threat to City’s defence.
The Verdict
Melbourne derbies always throw up the unexpected but all but 5 have so far have ended in a result either way.
Victory have dominated recent fixtures and have won 4 of the last 5 derbies with City’s lone victory during this period a 2-1 triumph in October 2017.
Victory has a 16-9 (64.0 percent) BTTS record in A-League matches played in October since 2011/12 while City has a 3-2 (60.0 percent) O/U 2.5 record at Marvel Stadium after a loss over the same period.
This should be a tough but exciting game showcasing a plethora of talent across the pitch and we’ll back the A-League champs to kickstart their title defence on a winning note.
Unibet Odds:
Melbourne Victory at $2.35
Draw at $3.60
Melbourne City at $2.95
Odds:
OFFER: Deposit $50 BET with $200 via this link – Ends Soon!
Tip: Melbourne City at $2.88
Correct Score: Melbourne City 3-1 at $17.00
More Info:
Teams:
Melbourne Victory squad:
1.Matthew ACTON (gk), 2.Storm ROUX, 3.Corey BROWN, 4.Keisuke HONDA, 5.Georg NIEDERMEIER, 6.Leigh BROXHAM, 7.Kenjok ATHIU, 8.Terry ANTONIS, 9.Kosta BARBAROUSES, 10.James TROISI, 11.Ola TOIVONEN, 14.Thomas DENG, 15.Raul BAENA, 16.Joshua HOPE, 20.Lawrence THOMAS (gk), 21.Carl VALERI (c), 22.Nicholas ANSELL, 23.Jai INGHAM ** two to be omitted **
Melbourne City squad:
1.Mark BIRIGHITTI (gk), 2.Ritchie De LAET, 3.Scott JAMIESON (c) , 4.Harrison DELBRIDGE, 5.Bart SCHENKEVELD, 7.Rostyn GRIFFITHS, 8.Riley MCGREE, 10.Dario VIDOSIC, 15.Kearyn BACCUS, 17.Anthony CACERES, 18.Eugene GALEKOVIC (gk), 19.Lachlan WALES, 23.Bruno FORNAROLI, 25.Iacopo LA ROCCA, 26.Luke BRATTAN, 27.Florin BERENGUER-BOHRER, 39.Anthony LESIOTIS, 43.Lucas PORTELLI ** two to be omitted **