It doesn’t get much bigger than this, a #BigBlue on Australia Day with massive ramifications for the Hyundai A-League ladder.
It doesn’t get much bigger than this, a #BigBlue on Australia Day with massive ramifications for the Hyundai A-League ladder.
Sydney FC head into the Big Blue with some confidence, having amassed 12 points from their last five games and leapfrogging Melbourne in that time.
Sydney FC’s 1-0 win against Wellington Phoenix in Round 15, where they dug deep and weathered Phoenix’s attacks, proved why they are still a fair shout of grabbing their third consecutive Hyundai A-League Premiership.
With Siem De Jong and Anthony Caceres sustaining injuries in that game, it seems Head Coach Steve Corica will be forced to test the depth of his squad — though, with the Asian Champions League beginning on March 6, he will no doubt hope they return in time to fight on two fronts.
Last time these two met, goals to Ola Toivonen and Keisuke Honda guided Victory to a 2-1 win at Jubilee Oval. Honda is now absent, while Sydney FC lost only once during the Summer of Heroes.
So the stage is set for a thrilling #BigBlue. A win for either side will see them cement second spot.
Key Opta stats
- Sydney FC have won three of their last four Hyundai A-League games played on Australia Day (January 26th), including their last two on the bounce.
- The Sky Blues have scored seven goals in the 15-minute period immediately after half-time this season, more than any other team in the competition.
Ins and outs
Melbourne Victory squad: 1.Matt ACTON (GK), 2.Storm ROUX, 3.Corey BROWN, 6.Leigh BROXHAM, 7.Kenny ATHIU, 8.Terry ANTONIS, 9.Kosta BARBAROUSES, 10.James TROISI, 11.Ola TOIVONEN, 13.Birkan KIRDAR, 14.Tommy DENG, 15.Raul BAENA, 16.Josh HOPE, 19.Rahmat AKBARI, 20.Lawrence THOMAS (GK), 21.Carl VALERI (C), 24.Elvis KAMSOBA, 25.Anthony LESIOTIS **two to be omitted**
Ins: 13. Birkan KIRDAR (promoted) 25. Anthony LESIOTIS (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: Jai INGHAM (quad – TBC), Keisuke HONDA (Hamstring – 1 week), Nick ANSELL (Hamstring – TBC), Georg NIEDERMEIER (Calf – TBC)
Sydney FC squad: 1.Andrew REDMAYNE (gk), 2.Aaron CALVER, 3.Ben WARLAND, 4.Alex WILKINSON, 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, 24.Cam DEVLIN, 25. Joel KING, 31.Luke IVANOVIC **one to be omitted**
Ins: 21.Charles LOKOLI-NGOY (promoted), 24.Cam DEVLIN (promoted), 25. Joel KING (promoted)
Outs: 17.Anthony CACERES (calf – awaiting scans), 22.Siem DE JONG (knee – awaiting scans)
Unavailable: 5.Jop van der LINDEN (hamstring – 1 week), 12.Trent BUHAGIAR (ACL – indefinite), 18.Jacob TRATT (groin – 2 weeks), 19.Chris ZUVELA (knee – indefinite), 23.Rhyan GRANT (International Duty)
How to watch
#WatchWithUs LIVE at our Official Home Away from Home at The Star, Sydney, on FOX SPORTS 505, 10 Bold and 10 play, or, streamed on the MyFootball Live App, which is live, fast and data-free for Telstra mobile customers.
