Slater: How A-League’s ‘original rivalry’ clash will impact title race, City’s test, Socceroo returns
Socceroos great ROBBIE SLATER and MARCO MONTEVERDE discuss the title implications of the “Original Rivalry” clash, Melbourne City’s test and a Socceroo’s return, in On The Attack.
Football
Don't miss out on the headlines from Football. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Socceroos great ROBBIE SLATER and MARCO MONTEVERDE discuss the title implications of the “Original Rivalry” clash, Melbourne City’s big test and the return of a Socceroo, in On The Attack.
BITTER RIVALRY
There isn’t a better way for Adelaide United to stamp their claims to being a genuine A-League title contender than by continuing Melbourne Victory’s ordinary run of form with a win in Saturday night’s “Original Rivalry” clash at Coopers Stadium.
For the Reds, there isn’t a bigger game on their calendar.
It’s the closest thing they have to a derby, with South Australians not known for their love for Victorians.
The Victory’s 6-0 grand final win over the Reds in 2007 is still a sore point for Adelaide fans.
It’s an embarrassing loss that current Reds coach Carl Veart, who played in that Adelaide team, won’t ever forget, and you can bet that he’s drilled the significance of the rivalry into his players this week.
Without too much fuss, Veart’s team has worked its way up the A-League ladder, where they only trail first-placed Melbourne City on goal difference, and have a game in hand.
However, despite only losing one game this season, the Reds have suffered some disappointing home results.
Late last month they led Western Sydney Wanderers 2-0 at Coopers Stadium only to lose 3-2.
A week earlier they also had a two-goal lead against Sydney FC at the same venue before letting their advantage slip late and having to settle for a 3-3 draw.
And then there was the 2-2 home draw against lowly Perth Glory in late November.
The Reds will hope that those three results don’t come back to haunt them at the end of the season.
However, in the meantime, all they can do is seek to pick up as many points as possible, and they would love that to start with another three on Saturday night against a Victory outfit that has slid outside the top six after a run on five matches without a win.
The Reds should be able to pounce on a vulnerable Victory, whose disappointing form has co-incided with the appointment of Arthur Diles as interim coach.
Under Patrick Kisnorbo, the Victory were sitting pretty near the top of the table, but since his shock departure for Japan last month, the Melbourne club hasn’t won a match.
The pressure is building on Diles, who was previously Kisnorbo’s assistant.
A restricted budget means the Victory aren’t likely to make a coaching change until the end of the season, with speculation that the club is targeting the services of current Western United boss John Aloisi.
Former Central Coast Mariners mentor Nick Montgomery – currently an assistant to Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham – is another rumoured target.
However, is a tight budget enough of an excuse not to hire someone else before the end of the season if Diles can’t get the Victory to fire to the point that the club is out of the running for finals football?
LITMUS TEST FOR CITY’S YOUNGSTERS
Melbourne City’s brilliant effort to rise to the top of the ladder despite the absence of a host of attacking weapons is to be applauded ahead of a tough battle against former leaders Auckland FC at Go Media Stadium on Saturday.
While City hasn’t always been pretty to watch, a host of youngsters, including the likes of Ben Mazzeo, Kavian Rahmani and Medin Memeti, have proven their worth for a City side unbeaten in its past seven matches.
City’s young brigade faces arguably its toughest test this weekend against the Black Knights, who will be desperate for redemption after last Saturday’s shock 1-0 loss to battlers Perth Glory.
Potentially aiding City’s cause in Auckland will be Socceroos stalwart Mathew Leckie, who hasn’t played in several weeks because of a hamstring injury but has been named in an extended squad by the Melbourne club’s coach Aurelio Vidmar.
“Lecks has been training with the group for the last three weeks on and off. We just modify him at some points,” Vidmar said.
Whether that’s enough for Vidmar to roll the dice with Leckie on Saturday, particularly considering the flight to Auckland won’t be ideal for his hamstring, remains to be seen.
GOOD FOR GERSBACH
It’s a welcome back to the A-League for ex-Socceroo Alex Gersbach, who after nine years of floating around Europe, has signed with Western Sydney Wanderers.
At just 27, Gersbach potentially has his best years ahead of him despite not having represented Australia since 2018.
In hindsight, perhaps the left-back wasn’t ready to move to Europe when he left Sydney FC as a teenager in 2016 to join Norwegian club Rosenborg.
However, Gersbach wasn’t the first, and definitely won’t be the last, young Australian player to prematurely test himself in Europe.
But his talent can’t be denied, having gone close to having his loan move to French club Lens in 2018 become a permanent deal only for a coaching change to end his time at the Ligue 1 outfit.
Gersbach will be a more than handy addition to an improving Wanderers team, and who’s to say that he can’t rekindle his Socceroos career under national coach Tony Popovic, who hasn’t been afraid to blood new talent and re-introduce some faces from the past since the start of his tenure in September.
Originally published as Slater: How A-League’s ‘original rivalry’ clash will impact title race, City’s test, Socceroo returns
Mata hurt in Wanderers win
Western Sydney returned to winning form in Brisbane but it was victory marred by an injury to the club’s biggest star.
A-League: Crucial Wanderers win comes at a massive cost
Playing to keep their finals hopes alive, the Wanderers have avoided a third straight loss to beat the Brisbane Roar. But the win has come at a massive cost. See the latest news.