Friday’s A-League Round 3 match is between Melbourne City and Sydney FC. The opening kick is set to commence at 9:50 am local time with the game to be played at AAMI Park. The away team Sydney FC are the favourites for the match. View our preview and teams for the game between Melbourne City and Sydney FC.
When: 2/11, starts at 9:50 am
Where: AAMI Park
Preview:
The teenager who stunned the A-League last season with a freakish scorpion kick goal is ready to put the sting into Sydney FC’s unbeaten A-League campaign.
Melbourne City midfielder Riley McGree set the A-League alight in last year’s semi-finals when he unleashed an audacious scorpion kick goal in the second half of Newcastle’s semi-final triumph over City.
Now at City, McGree is gearing up for a tilt at another A-League heavyweight in beaten FFA Cup Finalists and reigning A-League Premiers Plate champions Sydney FC.
Speaking to the media after last week’s 1-1 draw with the Mariners, McGree admitted City were wasteful in front of goal and are determined to capitalise on their chances when they face-off with the Sky Blues, who will be licking their wounds after a 2-1 FFA Cup defeat to the Reds.
“We weren’t able to put them (Mariners) away but there’s positive signs there and we can take that into our next game,’’ McGree said.
The battered and bruised Sky Blues jet into Melbourne ahead of their third game in 6 days after last Saturday’s Sydney derby in Sydney and Tuesday night’s FFA Cup Final in Adelaide.
Sky Blues manager Steve Corica has tried to manage the playing minutes of his squad as best he can, giving captain Alex Brosque and Milos Ninkovic an early rest in the Sydney derby ahead of the Cup Final while restricting the playing time of marquee man Siem de Jong by injecting him off the bench late in the second half.
The de Jong plan however, went awry with the former Ajax man injuring his hamstring which ruled him out of the Cup final.
The injury setback is latest in a string of injuries which have plagued the former Dutch international’s injury-riddled career.
The Verdict:
Melbourne City manager Warren Joyce has called on his players to show more of a ruthlessness in front of goal after wasting a plethora of opportunities against the Mariners.
City had a staggering 23 shots to 4 but finished the game with just 1 goal for all their efforts.
They need more polish in the front third and a lot of that responsibility will rest on the shoulders of City sharpshooter Bruno Fornaroli.
Nevertheless, it’s a good time for Joyce’s men to face the Sky Blues, who could be vulnerable after an arduous workload this week in both the A-League and FFA Cup.
Melbourne City are 8-2-5 at home over the last two seasons and have a 13-6 (68.4 percent) BTTS record at AAMI Park after a draw in A-League matches since 2012/13.
City has a 4-1 (80.0 percent) O/U 2.5 record at AAMI Park after a draw in A-League matches since 2016/17.
Unibet Odds:
Melbourne City $2.55
Draw $3.45
Sydney FC $2.78
Odds:
Tip: Sydney FC at $2.80
Correct Score: Sydney FC 1-0 at $2.63
More Info:
Teams:
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, 51.Idris ABDULAHI
Sydney FC squad:
1.Andrew REDMAYNE (gk), 2.Aaron CALVER, 4.Alex WILKINSON, 5.Jop van der LINDEN, 6.Josh BRILLANTE, 7.Michael ZULLO, 8.Paulo RETRE, 9.Adam LE FONDRE, 10.Milos NINKOVIC, 11.Daniel DE SILVA, 13.Brandon O’NEILL, 14.Alex BROSQUE (c), 20.Alex CISAK (gk), 21.Charles LOKOLI-NGOY, 23.Rhyan GRANT, 24.Cam DEVLIN, 25.Joel KING.