Muscat expects Melbourne Victory to return to winning ways against Roar

The last time Melbourne Victory went through a similar slump, they went on to win the A-League.

Melbourne Victory coach Kevin Muscat and defender Leigh Broxham. Picture: AAP

The last time Melbourne Victory went through a similar slump, they went on to win the A-League.

It only stands to reason then that Victory coach Kevin Muscat remains unfazed by his team’s current lack of results as the defending champions look to break a six-game winless streak when they play Brisbane Roar at Marvel Stadium tonight.

The Victorians have not tasted success in their past four games in the domestic competition, along with successive defeats in their opening two games of the Asian Champions League.

It’s a slump that has cost Victory the chance to win the Premiers Plate — they are 10 points behind Perth Glory with six rounds remaining — and is likely to lead to them failing to get out of the group stage of the ACL.

Victory haven’t won in the league since coming from two goals down to beat wooden spoon favourites Central Coast in early February.

Since then they have suffered losses to Perth and Newcastle Jets, and managed draws with Wellington Phoenix and Melbourne City.

Of course, the championship remains a realistic target, though understandably probably a lot more was expected from the club this season.

Still, Muscat refuses to lose any sleep over the situation.

He proved last season that he and the club are at their best when the stakes are high, as Victory came from fourth on the table to beat Newcastle in the grand final.

“No, there’s no pressure, not from a results perspective … not really,” Muscat said yesterday, after putting the squad through a light training session.

“I’m not going to put myself in a position where that is going to dictate what I do and all the decisions I am going to make.

“The one thing for us at the moment is that we are playing fairly well, the performances have been good, but we need to start getting the rewards.

“Internally, we’ve got our beliefs and I’ll remain true to those. It wasn’t so long ago that people didn’t have a very different opinion. We’re not going to spend a lot of time worrying about it.”

What will be of concern is the fact Victory will be down in numbers, with Thomas Deng absent because of Olyroos duties and James Donachie suspended.

That will mean Muscat will have to reorganise his defence with Georg Niedermeier, who returns from suspension, and the ever-reliable Leigh Broxham to pair up in the middle of the back four. Marquee striker Ola Toivonen is in doubt, having been forced off the field during the 3-1 away loss to Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the ACL on Tuesday.