To say it’s one of the most anticipated games of the season would be underselling tomorrow night’s clash at Wanderland between the top two, the Western Sydney Wanderers and Melbourne City.
One can barely wait, with the Wanderers disallowed goal drama when the teams met three weeks ago in Melbourne only adding to the plot.
John van ‘t Schip’s Melbourne City finally look the real deal, and they appear to be getting stronger by the week.
While they might have pushed the A-League regulators in managing to land Anthony Caceres “on loan” from parent Manchester City, there’s little doubt this has strengthened their squad, and even the starting 11.
Add Osama Malik and Nick Fitzgerald, who both came off the bench in the 3-1 win over a very abject Wellington Phoenix on Monday night, and you have to applaud whoever is responsible for managing the City salary cap.
I’ve been guilty for the past few years of labeling van ‘t Schip one of the luckiest and most over-rated coaches in the league, but the reality is he’s managed to somehow survive to the point where, now, he finally looks to have the cattle, and is getting the best out of them.
At the start of the season I suggested the Dutchman had no more excuses, such was the quality of the squad he assembled. Now with Caceres joining Aaron Mooy and Erik Paartalu in midfield, nothing short of a credible run deep into the finals will suffice.
Beat the Wanderers well tomorrow night and they will not only go top, but also make a case for championship favouritism.
The pressure mounts, but the squad now looks better equipped to deal with the expectation than it did at the start of the season.
Then, van ‘t Schip’s 11 still had a very young feel to it, at various times relying on the likes of Wade Dekker, Stefan Zinni, Hernan Espindola, Steve Kuzmanovski, Stefan Mauk, Jacob Melling, Paulo Retre, Jack Clisby and Ben Garrucio.
The likes of Clisby, Melling, Retre and Garrucio, in particular, have become key squad men, while I was surprised van ‘t Schip let Mauk go.
But the trade off is that he now has a starting side oozing with proven experience and quality, and van ‘t Schip appears to have found a formation that suits.
While he used a back four and front three for much of the first three months of the season, in recent times he has reverted to a 3-5-2 with the wingbacks, Ivan Franjic and Michael Zullo, doubling up as both defenders and attackers.
It’s a system that appears to suit both players who prefer to get forward and influence in attack rather than sit in a back four. This system gives them the license.
Their battle tomorrow night with the likes of Scott Jamieson and Scott Neville, who have had the better of their opponents for much of the season, whets the appetite, and will go a long way to deciding who can control proceedings.
By going to a back three, van ‘t Schip has also managed to protect Aaron Hughes a bit. Again, it’s been about adapting to his players, and the defence now has an experienced spine with Thomas Sorensen behind Patrick Kisnorbo and Hughes, while Clisby is nominally the number three while Connor Chapman recovers from a knee injury.
But against the Phoenix, with Clisby suspended, it was the adaptable Melling that stepped into the back three.
The fact Garrucio and Retre, very good in a back four in the early part of the campaign, can only make the bench now, tells you of City’s depth. Add Malik and Fitzgerald to the mix.
Yet, despite that, the Dutchman can ill-afford for anything to happen to his marquee, Mooy, and two visa strikers, Bruno Fornaroli and Harry Novillo, all in irresistible form.
Whereas Novillo played ostensibly as a wide-left player for much of last season and the early part of this, he is now being used a second striker, given license to roam around the front third.
With confidence flowing, he looks every bit the mobile striker, even popping up in the box for one-touch finishes when all he has shown in the past has been dribble and a vicious shot from distance.
Fornaroli relished playing alongside Novillo on Monday, almost getting on the end of a couple of his delightfully whipped crosses from the right. The Uruguayan is also enjoying the license to go wide and drift in, managing to get his goal on Monday by foraging in the space on the left usually reserved for Novillo.
It looked a lethal combination against the Nix and will be fascinating to see if they can make an impression on the league’s second-most stingy defence.
Caceres, if anything, should help take some of the creative burden off Mooy, but it was clear against Wellington that while the former Mariner will share the deepest position in the midfield three with Paartalu, he could still get forward.
While Paartalu spends the most time in the number six role, he took turns with Caceres pushing into the more advanced eight role, giving City a nice little midfield rotation.
Whereas the Wanderers tend to leave Andreu deeper, while Dimas bites around in the eight role and Mitch Nichols in the ten, City are a little less structured.
The midfield will be a fascinating watch tomorrow.
Few, if any, have been able to wrestle control from the Wanderers this season, but for 15 or so minutes after Luis Garcia came on on Saturday, the Mariners had Tony Popovic’s men rocking.
That was until Nick Montgomery went into a challenge a little too pumped-up.
What the Mariners did in that period was drive in numbers, and you can guarantee that Mooy, Fornaroli, Novillo, Caceres and wingbacks Zullo and Franjic will try pull the Wanderers out of shape.
Sydney FC have been guilty of trying to stifle better opponents in the past couple of weeks, resulting in fizzers in both the Sydney Derby last week and Big Blue on Australia Day, but you won’t see that at Wanderland tomorrow.
This promises to be far more expansive, but not out of control.
Popovic won’t allow it to become about reckless, all-out attack. It’s not his way. He will try to control it by pressing up, winning the ball high and stopping City from building up to Fornaroli and Novillo.
If City can break the shackles and get Mooy on the ball high, influencing, and the wingbacks advanced, then Fornaroli and Novillo come into the picture.
For all their recent flow and confidence, City still have a bit to prove on the road against the big sides, so this is a huge test against a very disciplined and organised Wanderers who have been creating plenty.
If they can get control at Wanderland, then City deserve every bit of the hype they’re getting.
Paul
Guest
Really. Caceres sent off, Mooy outplayed till Andreu substituted. Dirty play and stimulation by Fornaroli and 'elbows' Novillo unpunished by Melbourne sub-standard referee Shaun Evans. Both should have been given yellow cards.
Paul
Guest
Agree on Andreu The defence went to put when was substituted off. Being at the game tonight don't understand why there were not more yellow cards particularly Novillo and Fornaroli for simulation. Are Manchester (Melbourne) City the new protected species?
AZ_RBB
Guest
Didn't think all decisions went against us. But there were plenty of poor decisions. Novillo has a real love for the Parra surface. The substitutions were a little strange.
Paul
Guest
I have to say watching from the stand, it was like being against 12 men. I hope the match review committee look at the elbow on Dimas. I don't understand why Popa took Andreu off. After he was off, their goals started.
FIUL
Guest
So the 3-5-2 didn't work that well tonight for van't Schipp. The 2 wing backs were hopeless in their roles defending & ineffective in their roles attacking. Thought the game changed when Andreu came off for WSW & the 2 MelbCity wing backs were replaced.
Qantas & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
I'm glad you don't watch SBS anymore---I hope you enjoy Slater as much as I detest the man. BTW Lucy is a real foxy lady---love the gal. I hope you and Rebecca have an amazing love story to tell us one day. :)
Stevo
Roar Rookie
Pretty much agree with you Magiko. And how SBS ran down the HAL in the early days was disgraceful.
Horto Magiko
Roar Rookie
Zdrillic is unwatchable. He and Lucy zelic have successfully turned me off a lifelong affiliation with SBS football. And foster has long become a Barca cheerleading farcical parody. That incident when he demanded postecoglou quit his job live on national TV was the clincher for me.. And after recently watching the "Australian story" doco on ange...and les Murray the slimy snake admitting he basically put foster up to it and was gloating/glowing reminiscing about the incident...and what "great TV it was"..: Class act those guys. In short, he was once instrumental in delivering football to us here.. The central voice.. Reality is, he's now become irrelevant. And sbs has too.
Stevo
Roar Rookie
Don't worry, it'll be a good game because we will win !!!!!
AZ_RBB
Guest
Haha yeah we'll be bringing our tacklin boots tonight :P In saying that I expect it to be an exciting game of football. Of course, this being the ALeague, we expect the highest and most perfect ideals of football to be upheld, so no matter how entertaining the game is, people will bring up foul and tackle counts and questioning whether it was actually a good game or not.
Bondy
Guest
I think under 3 goals "attacking skills will be stifled " this evening with the Drive By's victorious = 1-0 ...
AZ_RBB
Guest
One of the biggest and most anticipated rounds of the season. WSW v City - a very difficult match for top of the table WSW. City's attack will be clinical and dangerous as it was the last time the teams met.....just 3 weeks ago!! WSW's only two goals in that game came from a GK howler and an own goal. Since then we scored a good goal vs SFC and received two gifts from CCM. Our attack really needs to step up. Pio and Santa are simply not capable even against the weakest defences. Gol Gol is an option but is yet to be a proven threat. Hoping to see 18k through the gates. Storm ended at 2pm clear skies since. Wellington v Central Coast - seeing CCM in the flesh last week, I was amazed at just how poor they were. Aside from a good stretch early in the second half, they spent the rest of the game passing the ball to WSW who consistently failed to do anything with it. Although Wellington were well beaten on Monday, they at least showed some resistance and some ability going forward. Not expecting many to turn up now that the closing down sale has ended. SFC v Brisbane - this is a tough one! SFC don't seem too interested in pressing forward but they're coming up against a Brisbane side that has shipped 7 goals in 2 games. This could be their chance to change perceptions as WSW did on a couple of occasions vs Adelaide a few years back. High profile clash regardless. Should draw close to 20k. But with rains forecast might be 9k. Perth v MVFC - an even tougher one. Perth are most certainly on the rise. But MVFC have bounced back as well. MVFC had a tough time vs Perth last season but I don't see that continuing tomorrow. MVFC will have enough class to bring Perth back down to earth. Always exciting when these two meet. Hopefully Perth's recent shopping spree gets a few fans through the gates. Adelaide v Newcastle - I just hope this doesn't get ugly. Adelaide are in good form. Newcastle, well, aren't. Adelaide could win this by 4 or 5 unless Newcastle really get their act together. With BBL over, locals should have nothing better to do on a Sunday arvo except watch their ever improving team play some football.
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss Very interesting ... also any news about which FTA we are moving to... also heard not from a great source but a person not prone to say things unless he believed what he was saying ... however I say this with the qualification not in any way an official source but as someone who knows someone who has told him ... this second hand and from what level the original story OK OK this could not be more qualified... but what he told me was the relationship between FFA and the new management team at SBS is so bad it was a large part of the reason to move the broadcast off their main channel ... I don't think has much to do with those we see and hear on the broadcast although it must have some impact...
Bondy
Guest
This is turning into a great season when there is 3 to 5 points between 1st and 7th on the ladder this means more mouth watering clashes each week ...
FIUL
Guest
Middy Yes, all WCQs for Australia are owned by the AFC & have been sold to World Sports Group. I have a corporate lunch at the Australian Open each year & a bloke from WSG was at our table again this year. Yes, you are spot on - the FTA networks are all keen on WCQs. I can also confirm, LIVE internet streaming of all ALeague matches via YouTube (possibly with a telco) is gaining further strength.
Midfielder
Guest
Fuss You out there ... tho you may be interested in this I read today... """ the next phase of World Cup qualifiers will soon be on the market. Unlike the current qualifiers, which are controlled by FFA and contracted to Fox Sports and SBS, the next phase is sold by the Asian Football Confederation which is keen to maximise the price by talking to execs at Nine, Seven and Ten. Of course, Ange and the boys have to overcome Tajikistan and Jordan in March to progress to the next phase"""".
AZ_RBB
Guest
Literally just hit Parra. Surely will be gone in an hour or two, well before kick off. But you know Sydney. If it rains within 24hrs of kick off we all take shelter and refuse to leave our multi million dollar shacks. I can guarantee even if this stops hours before kick off, it will slice thousands off tonight's attendance.
Kaks
Roar Guru
There will be people there to actually watch them play for once, therefore it balances itself out
marron
Guest
Have we had a massive downpour this season yet? Wouldn't be a wanderers season without one. looking forward to it.
marron
Guest
not the worst idea :lol: