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There may be 14 rounds still to play, but the A-League title race is essentially over. Brisbane Roar are the competition’s team to beat, with the rest of the league merely playing catch-up.
Remember those Roar fans who unfurled a “Mulvey out” banner last February?
It’d be interesting to hear their thoughts on Mike Mulvey now, after his Roar side schooled Melbourne Victory in the art of high-tempo passing football with a scintillating 3-0 win on Saturday night.
Brisbane’s first goal was a portent of things to come, as Dimi Petratos dummied a Diogo Ferreira cut-back, allowing man-of-the-match Thomas Broich to tee up Liam Miller to open the scoring from a 20-pass masterpiece.
The goal came from an unlikely source given it was just Miller’s third in the A-League, but credit must go to the Roar for picking up arguably the signing of the season, with the former Glory star considerably strengthening an already formidable outfit.
How different the result might have been if ex-Roar striker Kosta Barbarouses had finished an earlier chance for the Victory, but if the hosts thought they were still in the match at half-time, the Roar clearly had other ideas.
Their second goal was simply sublime, with Matt McKay dinking a finish over the hopelessly exposed Nathan Coe after a superb three-man give-and-go.
It was a goal of the highest quality, the sort we tune into European leagues every weekend to watch, and it ripped the heart out of an utterly bamboozled Victory defence.
Dimi Petratos rounded out proceedings with another outstanding finish – that’s four goals in two games for a player Sydney FC considered more trouble than he was worth – as the visitors turned on an exhibition against their shell-shocked hosts.
Put simply, the Roar’s second half performance provided some of the best football we’ve ever seen in the A-League.
What does that say about Mulvey and the reluctance of some A-League clubs to give untested coaches a chance?
Mulvey’s intensity is plain for all to see when he offers his thoughts in his post-match interviews, but it is also clear the Manchester-born tactician thinks deeply about the game.
Always quick to deflect attention back on to his players, it took some time for Mulvey’s system to fall into place, but now it has the Roar are positively flying.
It’s a different story entirely for rookie coach Kevin Muscat and his Melbourne Victory, who not only needs to lift his side for next weekend’s trip to the Hunter, but will do so missing several key players.
Central defender Nick Ansell is away on Young Socceroos duty, as are teammates Jason Geria, Scott Galloway and Connor Pain, while the experienced Adrian Leijer needlessly got himself sent off against the Roar.
Leijer has looked out of sorts all season for the Victory, and Muscat can now add Mitch Nichols to that list, with the normally energetic midfielder substituted at half-time amid transfer rumours linking him to J. League club Cerezo Osaka.
Cerezo’s new coach Ranko Popovic is a known Nichols admirer and it seems the industrious midfielder is almost certainly on his way out, handing Muscat another headache going into the second half of the season.
Victory are now 11 points behind league leaders Brisbane, and only Tony Popovic’s stuttering Western Sydney look capable of providing a genuine premiership challenge.
Their 3-1 defeat to Wellington Phoenix on New Year’s Day ramps up the significance of next weekend’s derby at home to Sydney FC, with the Wanderers no doubt desperate to keep themselves in the league title race.
They’ll hope to see the Roar slip up over the coming weeks, and a heavy multi-code Suncorp Stadium schedule won’t help Brisbane’s slick passing game.
But for now it’s Mulvey’s premiership to lose, after the Roar offered a glimpse of their frightening potential with a positively pulverising performance against the Victory.