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The Western Sydney Wanderers secure a third straight win as they dispatch of a poor Melbourne City side 3-0.
After a promising but goalless first half, the Wanderers grabbed the opener just a minute into the second half with Vidosic finding Nichols unmarked at the far post.
Vidosic would grab a second assist after he set up Piovaccari for a tap in, who grabbed his first goal in the A-league. The goal however was marred by controversy with a raised offside flag on Neville, who never got involved in play, causing the City defense to switch off.
The goal however was given with the Wanderers eventually putting the nail in the coffin with Bridge netting his 50th A-league goal after some neat work by Sotorio with ten minutes to go.
City never looked likely tonight with Mooy a notable absentee in midfield. The Wanderers in contrast are looking good all-round with their one weak spot in Piovaccari able to grab a goal despite another average performance.
All in all a convincing performance from the Wanderers who made a poor City side suffer.
Final Score
Melbourne City 0
Western Sydney Wanderers 3
It’s a mid-table clash between the A-League’s two newest teams, as Melbourne City welcome a revived Western Sydney Wanderers to AAMI Park. Join The Roar from 7:40pm (AEDT) for live scores and commentary.
Both sides come into the game off the back of solid wins.
Melbourne City claimed a resounding 4-2 win over bottom-of-the-league Adelaide United, while the Wanderers came from behind to defeat Newcastle 2-1.
Fifth and sixth on the table, both teams have won twice, drawn once, and lost twice this season, with style the only real difference between them.
City have scored more than double the goals of the Wanderers, netting 12, but have also nearly conceded twice as many, having let in 10. The goals haven’t flowed so freely for the Wanderers who have struck five times and conceded six this season.
A key reason behind this marked difference is each side’s respective international marquee strikers. City’s Uruguayan import Bruno Fornaroli has found the net five times this season, making him the early golden boot leader and singlehandedly equalling the number of goals scored by the Wanderers. The Wanderers’ Italian import, Federico Piovaccari, has yet to find the net in the A-League and has the unwanted mantle of having the most offsides to his name.
The game won’t be decided solely by these two, but with Fornaroli in red-hot form after scoring twice last week and Piovaccari likely frustrated after his slow start, they can certainly exert considerable influence.
Another key area to keep an eye on is the battle in midfield, with Mitch Nichols so far impressing for the Wanderers, grabbing two goals and controlling the middle with real calm. City are without their midfield rock, with Aaron Mooy out through international duty.
City have also been exposed at the back in recent weeks, struggling to keep opposition attacks at bay, but are buoyed by having veteran Danish keeper Thomas Sorensen between the sticks.
After a horror opening round showing, the Wanderers have improved defensively in recent weeks, conceding just three goals in four games.
As mentioned, Aaron Mooy is out for City, with Robert Koren, Michael Zullo and Marc Marino also absent due to injuries. They do however welcome back Corey Gameiro from injury and have promoted Jason Trifiro and Steve Kuzmanovski, two former Wanderers.
Things remain much the same for the Wanderers, with their only absentees being Shannon Cole and Golgol Mehbratu. They also welcome back Spanish defender Alberto and young striker Joshua Macdonald.
Join The Roar from 7:40pm (AEDT) for all of the action as Melbourne City and the Western Sydney Wanderers face off.
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