A-League: Brandon Borello key in Western Sydney’s A-League win over Wellington Phoenix
Brandon Borello fired Western Sydney Wanderers to a thumping of Wellington Phoenix as a young teammate continued his push for a Socceroos call up. Get the latest from every A-League game here.
The Western Sydney Wanderers have broken into A-League Men’s top-six after making it three games unbeaten with a 4-1 win over Wellington at CommBank Stadium.
After a lacklustre start to the season, during which his side managed just one competition point from their opening three games, coach Alen Stajcic has managed to steady the ship.
His men are now on 11 points and occupy a finals spot after leapfrogging Macarthur due to a superior goal tally.
“I’m obviously very happy with the result,” Stajcic said post-game.
“Over the past six or seven weeks, we’ve seen elements of our game sort of come together, where we’ve done one thing well, but we’ve done another one or two parts of the game not so well.
“Today I thought it was probably the most complete it’s been . . . but still, for me, there’s plenty of areas to improve on.”
The Wanderers came out of blocks firing, scoring twice in the opening 10 minutes.
Zac Sapsford struck in the first minute of play after Wellington defender Isaac Hughes slipped while trying to clean up a long ball from Gabriel Cleur.
The ball was recovered by Borrello, whose low cross provided Sapsford with his third goal of the campaign.
The lead was doubled nine minutes later when Nicolas Milanovic pinched the ball off Corban Piper deep in the Phoenix’s half.
Milanovic subsequently linked up with Borrello, who unselfishly fed former Wellington man Bozhidar Kraev.
After a poor first half, the Phoenix managed to peg one back via a brilliant bicycle kick to Hideki Ishige at the hour mark, but a 65th-minute tap-in to Marcus Antonsson and an injury-time rocket to Dylan Scicluna sealed the deal for the home side.
You don't hit 'em much sweeter than this! 😲🔥
— Isuzu UTE A-League (@aleaguemen) December 22, 2024
20-year-old Dylan Scicluna goes BANG from outside of the box to score his first Isuzu UTE A-League goal. Unreal ðŸ‘
📰 Match report: https://t.co/sejkaCUaJC@wswanderersfcpic.twitter.com/EoTFuSJ1X6
BORELLO’S BLINDER
Brandon Borrello continued his stellar start to the season with an attacking masterclass against the Phoenix.
After scoring both goals in the Wanderers’ 2-all draw with Brisbane, the Socceroos star backed up with two assists against Wellington.
In his 50th game for the club, the 29-year-old was a constant threat to the Phoenix defence and earned a well-deserved early mark from Stajcic when he was replaced by Juan Mata in the 77th minute.
MILANOVIC MAGIC
Nicolas Milanovic has continued to assert his status as one of Australia’s brightest footballing prospects.
While the 21-year-old Socceroos hopeful was unable to add to his tally of five goals for the season (equal top alongside Wellington’s Kosta Barbarouses), he was dynamic in attack, forcing the error that laid the foundation for Kraev’s strike, while also striking the post in the 48th minute.
STILL NOT SATISFIED
Despite their dominant win, Stajcic claimed he was disappointed with his team’s second half performance.
“I don’t think we managed the game well at different moments... particularly in the second half,” the manager said.
“There are still parts of the game where we need a little more maturity and evolution to be a really top team.
“There was a period where I thought the game should have been put to bed... and we let them stay in the hunt for a good 10, 15, 20-minute period.
“Wellington got back to 2-1 through our own poor play.
“We could have easily scored another two or three goals, in my view”
‘They’re very together’: Victory boss hails Derby performance
– Ronny Lerner
Interim Melbourne Victory coach Arthur Diles has hailed the resolve of his players after enduring one of the most dramatic weeks in the club’s history.
Last Tuesday, Patrick Kisnorbo sensationally departed Victory, just seven games into his tenure as head coach, for an undisclosed job overseas.
It could’ve been enough to rattle his former side, but they performed admirably against arch rivals Melbourne City at AAMI Park on Saturday night and were unlucky to not get more than a draw considering how much they dominated play.
“They definitely dealt with everything very professionally and hence why you get a performance like that,” Diles said.
“When situations like this happen, it can go one of two ways: it can be a complete disaster or it can be a disciplined performance – togetherness that they showed.
“I think they did that quite well and they showed that, as a group, they’re very mature, they’re very professional and they’re very together and I’m really proud of them.”
Diles described being the man in charge as “good fun”.
“It makes it pleasant when you’ve got good people around you and great staff, and obviously a playing squad,” he said.
“So when you’ve got support around you like that, it definitely makes the job easier.”
But unlike former Victory coach Tony Popovic, who would always give his players Christmas Day off, Diles will be affording his squad no such luxury with their next game on Saturday night against Sydney FC.
“That’s the unfortunate part about playing in Australia when you play throughout Christmas and New Year,” he said.
“We’ve got a schedule and a process we follow. Unfortunately Christmas Day falls on a training day so it’s business here at the end of the day and we’ve got a job to do.
“Maybe we’ll train a little bit earlier and send them to their families earlier, but we’ll be training.”
Veteran striker Bruno Fornaroli fell out of favour under Kisnorbo, with just four appearances in the opening seven games, including three as a sub.
And while he was used as a sub again on the weekend, he played 27 minutes, which was his biggest involvement in a game since the season opener against Central Coast, and it could be a portent of things to come under Diles for the former Socceroo.
“It’s just been the coach’s (Kisnorbo’s) decision to play someone else,” Diles said.
“That doesn’t mean he’s not a very vital member of this team, it was just his (Kisnorbo’s) opinion and what he was looking for.
“He’s always been very valuable to this team and then will continue to be so and he’s a very good player and a very good person and the team and the club is better with him.”
Cohen screamer highlights Melbourne Derby draw
– Ronny Lerner
A 16th-minute screamer by Melbourne City forward Yonatan Cohen hasn’t been enough to upset Melbourne Victory, which equalised through captain Roderick Miranda in the 65th minute in the A-League Men’s derby at AAMI Park last night.
Cohen, who brought down a lovely Steven Ugarkovic cross, rounded Kasey Bos and then, just as Miranda arrived on the scene, the Israeli curled it around Victory goalkeeper Jack Duncan in spectacular fashion from 16m in Saturday’s eventual 1-1 draw.
BEACH BLUNDER
Unfortunately for young City custodian Patrick Beach, he committed another error on a night when he produced a host of sensational saves.
But all of his good work came undone in the 65th minute when he allowed the ball to go through his gloves from a Ryan Teague corner and Miranda made no mistake from the goal line.
It came just a week after he made a similar error in the last minute of City’s clash with Auckland that cost his team the win.
POST-KISNORBO BLUES
Victory was the more dangerous side all night, and finished up with sizeable leads in shots on goal (23-11), shots on target (8-5), corners (10-3) and possession (59 per cent).
A mere four days after Patrick Kisnorbo sensationally departed, just seven games into his tenure as head coach, for an undisclosed job overseas, his old club had the chance to move to the top of the ladder.
But it failed to get the job done under interim coach Arthur Diles.
CITY WASTES CHANCES
City could have gone 2-0 up early in the second half when Medin Memeti streamed towards goal and only had Duncan to beat, but couldn’t finish a golden chance from 10m.
Eleven minutes later it had another chance when Memeti’s cross found Harry Politidis at the far post, but the latter’s shot from close range was denied by Duncan again.
NISHAN NEARLY DOES IT
After Victory drew level, it had an opportunity to go ahead in the 77th minute when Nishan Velupillay unloaded from 16m and beat the diving Beach but unfortunately for Victory, it hit the left upright.
A couple of minutes later, Bruno Fornaroli’s wicked chance, was denied by another sensational save from Beach diving to his left.
LATE EFFORTS MISS
In the 81st minute, Callum Talbot came close to giving City the lead, but his attempt from outside the box was denied by an incredible one-handed stop from Duncan.
Victory had one last chance in the fourth minute of added time when Vellupillay’s through ball found Bruno Fornaroli, but Kai Trewin got there in time to pressure Fornaroli and Aziz Behich was in the right spot to clear it.
‘Club supports me’: Roar coach defiant despite loss to Glory
– Marco Monteverde
Brisbane coach Ruben Zadkovich remains defiant despite the already immense pressure on him further intensifying after the Roar’s woeful display in a 1-0 home loss to fellow strugglers Perth Glory.
In a battle between the A-League’s two worst teams at Suncorp Stadium, it was the Glory who broke through on Saturday for their first win of the season thanks to a second-half volley from former Roar striker David Walliams.
The Glory’s victory moved them three points clear of last-placed Roar, who are now the only A-League team yet to win this season.
While it was a relieving result for embattled Perth coach David Zdrilic, his Brisbane counterpart Zadkovich will be lucky to survive after his side’s latest disaster, which was the club’s seventh successive home defeat.
Since Zadkovich took charge in February, the Roar have won three times in 21 matches in all competitions.
A host of candidates, including former Roar quarter Besart Berisha, Matt Smith, Scott McDonald and Karl Dodd, have been linked to the Brisbane coaching job for the past few weeks.
Roar officials have remained silent on Zadkovich’s future, refusing to answer questions about the safety of his tenure.
However, the former Socceroos midfielder was adamant he had the backing of the club.
“I’m fine under pressure – that’s what I signed up for,” Zadkovich said.
“I’m well aware of the difficulties that the club’s in and the circumstances that the club’s in, and the responsibility is on my shoulders to keep pushing and keep trying to get through this difficult period.
“I’ve got the support of the people that I deal with at the club and until I hear otherwise, I’ll continue to try to do my best for this club.
“I’m doing everything, every single day, and so are my staff, and so are my players, and sometimes it’s the reality of the situation you’re in.
“It’s nowhere we want to be. It certainly hurts.”
The Roar only showed any real desperation on Saturday after falling behind to Williams’ 69tth minute volley, which deflected off Roar defender Lucas Herrington on its way to the back of the net.
However, Brisbane’s late surge amounted to nothing, with a chorus of boos ringing around Suncorp Stadium at the end of the match.
Earlier, former Perth forward Adam Zimarino blew a golden chance to give Brisbane the lead eight minutes into the second half when he failed to hit the target from close range after being set-up by a classy French playmaker Florin Berenguer.
It was a rare chance in a largely forgettable contest played in stifling heat and humidity.
The first-half was particularly dire, although Roar attacking midfielder Keegan Jelacic – who spent the 2022-23 season with the Glory – unleashed a sizzling long-distance strike that smashed into the crossbar.
Otherwise, the Roar, who also lost defender Ben Warland to a likely season-ending knee injury, failed to lift in an extremely disappointing performance.
McDonald, who was providing expert comments on the sideline for Network 10, questioned Brisbane’s intent.
“When they get the ball, you are the home team, you do play in the heat, this type of heat far more often, (and) you (should) use it to your advantage,” McDonald said
“There was a (first-half) free-kick in the middle of the pitch, (but) they were so slow to react to it and get it down and start playing. Everything’s a little bit too slow.
“The midfield are being a little sloppy in possession as well.”
Western Utd end Auckland’s unbeaten start to A-League
– Marco Monteverde
Western United has ended Auckland FC’s unbeaten start to the A-League season with a stunning 4-0 away win.
Goals from Japanese pair Riku Danzaki and Hiroshi Ibusuki, emerging striker Noah Botic and substitute Matthew Grimaldi reduced the Black Knights to passengers at Go Media Stadium on Saturday as United claimed another scalp on the road following last weekend’s 4-3 win over Sydney FC at Allianz Stadium.
After starting their maiden season with six successive wins, the Black Knights dropped points for the first time last Sunday when they drew 2-2 with Melbourne City at AAMI Park.
However, they had been expected to bounce back on their home ground, where they had only conceded one goal in four previous A-League games.
But inspired by a brilliant display from midfield general Angus Thurgate, United rarely looked threatened as they opened up a match-defining 3-0 lead after just 34 minutes.
United defender Tomoki Imai, who wore the captain’s armband in the absence of regular skipper Ben Garuccio, was delighted with the result.
“We’re very happy to win the game but Auckland is a very good side so it was a very tough game,” Imai told Sky Sport New Zealand.
“Last week we played very well and had a great win against Sydney FC. This week we trained very hard, and had a good preparation, and from the start we were going to fight, so it was very good.
“We are very confident. At the moment it’s two wins in a row, but (we want) three, four and to keep going.”
United grabbed a deserved lead in the 17th minute from the penalty spot following a handball offence from Auckland defender Callan Elliot.
United midfielder Danzaki, who had the shot that led to Elliot’s indiscretion, slotted the spot kick home to silence the home crowd of 13,681.
The Auckland fans were left further stunned six minutes later when striker Botic doubled the visitors’ lead after being first to a loose ball in the penalty area after teammate Ibusuki had forced goalkeeper Alex Paulsen into a save from point-blank range.
Ibusuki was to be rewarded for his tireless work with a goal of his own in the 34th minute as United further extended their lead.
However, the goal was shrouded in controversy, with Auckland furious with referee Casey Reibelt, who seemed to inadvertently block Black Knights midfielder Jake Brimmer which led to the hosts losing the ball in the build-up to the goal.
However, United didn’t care, and it was only the woodwork that prevented them scoring a fourth goal in the first-half after a sizzling 43rd-minute strike from Thurgate hit the crossbar.
Auckland attempted to force its way back into the game with a 55th-minute shot from Chilean midfielder Felipe Gallegos that forced a good save out of United goalkeeper Matt Sutton.
However, it was a rare attacking foray for the Black Knights, with Grimaldi completing the rout with a goal in the 87th minute.
REDS MISS CHANCE TO GO TOP
– Val Migliaccio
Adelaide United remain unbeaten but squandered a chance to sit atop of the A-League summit after conceding two late goals in a 3-3 draw with Sydney at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
Adelaide’s Ben Folami got his side off to a perfect start before Sydney’s superstar Douglas Costa scored a brace with his second goal arriving a minute before time to bring the score back to 3-2.
That goal swung the momentum Sydney’s way.
Costa then took the corner in the fifth minute of second half stoppage time which saw Jordan Courtney-Perkins rise the highest to nod the ball into the back of the net to earn the visitors a critical point.
Adelaide before the equaliser appeared to be cruising to victory but the wheels fell off after coach Carl Veart made four potentially crucial second-half substitutions.
However, Folami carving his way past very average Sydney defending during a counter-attack in the sixth minute told a very different story before Adelaide crashed.
Folami relayed the ball wide to Dylan Pieras who squared the ball to Archie Goodwin.
Goodwin scored before a VAR check for a potential offside.
Former Brazilian international Costa equalised 10 minutes later, after Adelaide had its turn to defend poorly.
Patrick Wood’s strength and persistence allowed the young forward to get to the byline on the edge of the box.
Costa read Wood’s cutback perfectly to slam the ball home from 10m and score his first A-League goal after signing for the Sky Blues this season.
Stefan Mauk made it 2-1 in the 25th minute with a calm finish from close range when Sydney’s questionable defending again came to the fore.
Sydney’s Aaron Gurd watched his header crash onto the crossbar after Costa’s set piece wreaked havoc as Sydney was chasing an equaliser.
However, Goodwin’s second goal and Adelaide’s third of the game seemed to drain the Reds.
Sydney’s gloveman Harrison Devenish-Meares couldn’t hold a Jay Barnett shot in the 54th minute which saw Goodwin react first to the rebound to tuck the ball home.
Costa scored his second of the evening with a cross that ended up in the back of the net when reds keeper James Delianov appeared distracted.
COSTA A-LEAGUE CLASS
Sydney is one of the recent rare A-League clubs that has invested in a five-star import that not many football fans need to Google because Costa is world-class.
The 34-year-old former Juventus and Bayern Munich star who had superstar teammates such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski has won German Bundesliga and Italian Serie A titles and a FIFA Club World Cup.
The former Brazilian international showed glimpses of the form that made him a Juventus and Bayern fans’ favourite at the height of his career.
However, Costa was lucky to escape with a caution on the stroke of halftime when he appeared to shoulder Ryan Kitto in the head after Mauk also escaped the wrath of referee Daniel Elder following a couple of tough challenges.
NESTORY RESTLESS
Former Adelaide teenager Nestory Irankunda was in the Hindmarsh gallery watching his former teammates after moving to Bayern Munich this year.
Irankunda, 18, who hasn’t yet featured for Bayern’s first team told Paramount+ that he had talked to the German giant about going out on loan to get some high-level game time.
“It’s better for me; I can’t keep playing under-23s (for Bayern),’’ Irankunda said.
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