Key defender Rhyan Grant is suspended for Thursday’s A-League blockbuster with Melbourne Victory but Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold refuses to be rattled by his Big Blue selection conundrum.
Grant received his fifth yellow card – and was lucky not to be sent off – early in Friday night’s cruisy 2-0 win over Adelaide United.
It means undefeated leaders Sydney will be without the in-form right-back for the top-of-the-table Australia Day clash at Etihad Stadium.
And with Seb Ryall still sidelined through injury and new signing Jordy Buijs still waiting on his clearance, options are slim.
Should Buijs be cleared to play, the Dutchman will likely have to slot straight into central defence alongside Alex Wilkinson, leaving well-performing youngster Aaron Calver to cover Grant at right-back.
Without Buijs, Arnold may be forced to shift either Josh Brillante or Brandon O’Neill back in what could prove a crucial match for the Sky Blues’ Premiers’ Plate ambitions.
But the coach, who’d just overseen his side’s 12th win and 10th clean sheet from 16 games, was unfazed.
“Rhyan’s suspended, but we’ve got depth,” Arnold said.
“We’ve got Calver who can play there, we’ve got Jordy who’s ready to play and Josh Brillante played half a dozen national-team games at right fullback.
“So it doesn’t bother me.”
Arnold said he’d never even considered a squad shake-up given starters Grant, Michael Zullo and Filip Holosko were all on four yellow cards entering the Reds match.
Regular substitute striker Matt Simon also has four.
The Reds win lifted Sydney eight points clear of second-placed Victory, who are still to play Perth on Saturday night, and will travel to Melbourne full of confidence.
“They’re all big games for me; (Victory) is just another game,” Arnold said.
“I’ll watch Melbourne’s game on Saturday and we’ll freshen up over the weekend, then we’ll prepare for them.”
Sydney broke yet another record at Allianz Stadium on Friday, becoming the quickest team to reach 40 points in a season.
While the display was a few gears below their best, two second-half goals in as many minutes from skipper Alex Brosque and playmaker Milos Ninkovic sealed the result – and recovery from Holosko’s wrongfully disallowed opener.
Grant, who provided Brosque’s inch-perfect assist, should have earned a straight red card for his sliding, studs-up tackle on Reds playmaker Marcelo Carrusca.
But Arnold assessed it as a ’50-50′ call.
“Rhyan’s a passionate player, it’s the way he plays,” he said.
“He wins a lot of ball back for us … that one was probably just a little bit out on the timing.”
jupiter 53
Guest
Oops - meant to be a reply to Caltex! And to be fair to Grant, the reason he is so frustrating to watch is because occasionally he gets it very very right - witness the cross to Brosque for the the first goal last night.
jupiter 53
Guest
Welcome!
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
Indeed, referees are only human and hence make assessments on any event with information they have on hand. Players like to influence that information by "milking it". 'False News' has had an active life well before Trump. My comment was more in response to MAF's comment relating to the level of injury to the player.
Caltex & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
Yep, I'll join you at the banquet. ;)
jupiter 53
Guest
Also a SFC supporter and I totally agree. At the game in real time I thought it looked bad, and on the replay I thought it looked awful. We could have had no complaints if it was a straight red. My little cabal at the game [daughter, brother and sister in law] reckons Grant is a couple of seasons away from being a great player [if he learns from his mistakes]. He needs to learn to temper his remarkable energy with judgment. That applies when making tackles, but also in attack. If I had $10 for every time he gets himself into a good attacking position and then wastes his final ball, I would be sitting in the Platinum Plus seats with my family, their mates, and their mates' mates, and we would have change for a post game banquet.
Caltex & SBS support Australian Football
Guest
Grant, was lucky to just receive the yellow. I'm a SFC supporter, and I would not argue if the red was shown to Grant, an over the ball tackle deserves a red.
Freddie
Guest
Oh grow up. An accusation of bias from someone who has Allianz as his photo? There's your answer.
marcel
Guest
Theoretically yes... But if it were true in practice we wouldnt have players pretending to be hurt when they are not.
At work
Roar Rookie
Well said Sydster. The amount of bias against SydFC from the football community is embarrassing. Grants wasn't sliding in hard, if he was I'd admit it would be a red offence, but he had to force to the tackle, Corrusca was in no danger of any broken bones. Bruised yes - Fair yellow
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
The severity of a foul is dictated by the action, not the amount of damage that ensues from that action. Whether Carrusca was fine or had his leg broken should have no bearing on the penalty awarded. This is the same principle that is applied across all sports.
Mister Australian Football
Roar Rookie
Settle down there guys. As soon as the yellow card was awarded Carrusca got up and played the whole game like nothing happened.
Fadida
Guest
Your bias is clear. Each incident must be treated in isolation. Grant was very lucky not to get a red. Probably saved by the lack of momentum. 0-0 at the time, could have been a game changer.
sydster
Guest
Calm down, if we compare some of Santalab's tackles this year and no send offs, Grant's tackle was nowhere near as bad as the agricultural efforts from the so called super sub this season. The haters and bias commentators will need to find another way to vent their spleen against the league leaders.
Kris
Roar Rookie
50/50? Probably just a little out on timing? Arnold is a disgrace. Grant should have been sent off last week as well, but should be missing at least three matches for the assault on Carrusca last night. Do we need to wait for a broken leg before action is taken against reckless and dangerous tackles?