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Will Melbourne City ever be the biggest club in Victoria? Probably not – but they can land a hammer blow to their crosstown rivals Melbourne Victory tonight.
What are Melbourne City exactly? Are they Melbourne’s second team? A mere satellite of Manchester City?
Are they supposed to have won over non-Victory fans by playing an attractive brand of football and, if so, how does coach Warren Joyce fit into those plans?
And why, after seven-and-a-half seasons in the A-League and one re-brand later, are we still asking questions about Melbourne City’s identity?
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What does the club stand for?
Maybe we’ll go some way to finding out tonight. Because if City want to stand for something, they can’t afford to pass up such a golden opportunity to put their noisy neighbours in their place.
There’s no doubt City were responsible for unearthing one of the A-League’s greatest ever talents in Bruno Fornaroli.
But what is in doubt is whether Fornaroli will ever be as effective as he once was before his ankle was so crudely broken in that ill-fated FFA Cup tie. And that’s a problem for a side that was surprisingly quick to see off the likes of Tim Cahill and on-loan top scorer Ross McCormack.
They’ve relied heavily of late on teenage sensation Daniel Arzani, but can the kid step up in the high-pressure situations? We’ll soon find out.
Victory, meanwhile, have endured a season to forget – which feels like a strange thing to say about a team currently lying fourth.
They’ve got a battle on their hands to retain fan favourite Leroy George, and if they push the boat out to keep James Troisi instead – who almost joined City – they’ll have a few more unhappy fans to contend with at the start of next season.
Victory fans might arguably be the most loyal in the league, but they’re also quick to voice their dissatisfaction, and lately coach Kevin Muscat has been hearing plenty of that from the terraces.
It’s not like the derby is season-defining – both clubs should qualify for the finals regardless – but if City ever wanted to lay down a marker, they’ve got the perfect opportunity to do so tonight.
(AAP Image/Julian Smith)
The same could be said for the Newcastle Jets. Ernie Merrick might have already suggested Saturday’s clash with Sydney FC is not “make or break”, but the Jets will want to give a good account of themselves en route to the finals.
And with both sets of fans buying up tickets in big numbers, the game will also be played out against the backdrop of a reasonably full stadium.
That probably won’t be the case at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night, although Brisbane Roar fans need not have given up on their misfiring outfit just yet.
The Roar’s finals hopes hang in the balance, but a win against the unpredictable Adelaide United will keep John Aloisi’s team well and truly in the hunt – not least because the Roar still have 18 points to play for.
If the season is a lost cause for anyone, it’s Wellington Phoenix. They’ve already told coach Darije Kalezic not to bother showing up next season, and you have to wonder what long-time Auckland City coach Ramon Tribulietx needs to do to get a look-in at A-League level.
New Zealand Football didn’t even bother interviewing Tribulietx for the vacant position of All Whites coach, despite the fact that bringing down European coaches of middling pedigree hasn’t exactly worked out for them recently.
Still, if the A-League has taught us anything, it’s that past performance doesn’t seem to have much bearing on future rewards.
How else to describe the fact that Football Federation Australia has quietly extended the contract of David Gallop, as revealed by indefatigable Herald Sun reporter David Davutovic?
You couldn’t make it up.
Lucky we have a monumental round of football to distract us, because without it, all you could do is hang your head and cry.