If five matches in 14 days wasn’t tough enough, Adelaide coach Aurelio Vidmar expects his charges to cop a physical battering in Friday night’s A-League clash with Central Coast at Hindmarsh Stadium.
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While Adelaide are over the moon with their success in the Asian Champions League, with the club set to meet Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor in the semi-finals, their progress in the tournament has meant their focus on the A-League has drifted somewhat.
Adelaide even asked Football Federation Australia to postpone some of their A-League matches to cater for their ACL commitments — to no avail.
Central Coast, meanwhile, have quietly surged into fourth spot on the back of a four-match unbeaten run, with their 4-1 triumph over Perth last week their most impressive performance of the season.
Adelaide also hit top form last round, with their 2-0 win over Newcastle catapulting them into third spot on the table and within one point of the top-two.
But Vidmar is under no illusions as to what the Mariners will serve up tomorrow night.
“It’s going to be a really big battle for us because the Central Coast is a physical team,” Vidmar said.
“They’re not flashy or brilliant but they play good tough football and that’s the way Lawrie (McKinna) has instilled their football and they have been doing it very well.
“They wiped Perth Glory off the floor with some great goals and they’ve got some dangerous players.
“We really need to be focused, prepared for a physical fight and if we can match them in that aspect I think we’re good enough to get the three points.”
Adelaide midfielder Lucas Pantelis is likely to spend another week on the sidelines with a groin injury while Olyroo Kristian Sarkies has been ruled out with a foot injury.
The Mariners will be without star goalkeeper Mark Bosnich, who injured his hamstring against the Glory last week.
Andrew Redmayne is set to take over in between the posts.
Adelaide have ruled out launching an appeal against FFA’s decision not to reschedule the club’s games but chief executive Sam Ciccarello admitted the decision could affect United’s A-League and ACL campaigns.
“We’re very disappointed that our request couldn’t be accommodated in what is an increasingly busy and very difficult schedule,” Ciccarello said.
“We’re delighted to have progressed so far in this prestigious competition but certainly this is a bit of a setback in terms of our ability to get the best out of our playing squad.”
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