Roar Guru
Sydney FC and Melbourne City do battle in a top of the table A-League clash that could serve as a grand final preview. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 7:50pm (AEDT).
Two of the best teams in the competition clash barely a week after City defeated Sydney en route to securing the FFA Cup.
In a dour contest, City did enough to secure a narrow 1-0 win courtesy of Tim Cahill’s winner.
Cahill should once again be expected to start against Sydney after coming on for a late cameo in last week’s 1-1 draw against Brisbane.
Despite the defeat in the FFA Cup final, Sydney remains in a commanding position on the A-League ladder, and a win tonight could see them extend their lead to nine points on top of the table.
Sydney are well served on the attacking front, with George Blackwood, David Carney, Bernie Ibini, Bobo and Milos Ninkovic all in strong form. They should ask plenty of questions of a City defence that was very suspect at times against the Roar.
Brisbane could have easily scored three goals last week against Melbourne after Jamie McClaren made the most of a shocking attempted clearance from Manny Muscat to slot home the opener.
City can ill-afford such defensive lapses against Sydney, even if they can rely on the brilliance of Bruno Fornaroli or Cahill for goals.
Attacking stars Nicolas Colazo, Fernando Brandan and Bruce Kamau also add plenty of class to a City attack that should provide Sydney with their sternest test of the A-League campaign.
Prediction
City have been inconsistent away from home, with defeat to Brisbane and a draw against the Wanderers raising concerns about their ability to play their best outside of Melbourne.
Sydney, meanwhile, remain undefeated and confidence is high despite the defeat in the FFA Cup final. City should provide them with their sternest test – a test that should end in a score draw.
2-2 draw.