Opinion
Let’s look at who performed and who under-performed in Round 14 of the A-League.
Kosta Barbarouses
The Sydney man continued his impressive form for his new side against the Jets. He set up Adam Le Fondre’s opening goal and then scored the go-ahead goal, which would go on to be the winner. He made 23 of his 27 passes (85 per cent accuracy). His highly efficient distribution was on display.
Diego Castro
Of his five key passes for the match, two of them were assists. Castro set up the opening two goals of the game to get his side off to a brilliant start. He put in an impressive shift in attacking midfield in which he found plenty of the ball and was efficient with it, making 45 of his 52 passes (87 per cent).
(AAP Image/Tony McDonough)
Matt Simon
Matt Simon is still part of an A-League list for a single reason: to be a large presence in the box, and to annoy defenders and opposing supporters alike to sway results. And Simon played this role to perfection in his game against the Victory. He was the cause of many scuffles and unsettled the Victory side so they made sloppy decisions in defence. It led to two penalties in injury time and Simon stepped up both times from the spot to win the game.
Newcastle Jets
Ernie Merrick was sacked midweek, as the club thought a new manager would be a welcome change. It proved to make little difference, though. Signs were encouraging early, but the Jets were beaten by a better side and still have a long way to go to be competitive again.
Western Sydney Wanderers
The Wanderers have been a surprise packet this season for all the wrong reasons. The Wanderers have under-performed this season and their performance against the Phoenix did the manager Markus Babbel no favours in proving he’s the right man for the job. It looks like their season is over.
Melbourne Victory
The Victory had the lead twice and threw it away twice. While the two penalties they conceded in injury time were contentious, the Victory looked unsettled in defence and really should’ve secured at least a point. The red card to manager Marco Kurz also added insult to injury as next week the side will be without their boss.
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
Everton won the Merseyside derby 2-0, with Toffees supporters taunting Liverpool after the game at their home ground Goodison Park.
Jarrad Branthwaite and Dominic Calvert-Lewin have blasted a hole in Liverpool's Premier League title challenge as Everton powered their way to a priceless derby…
The real concern comes down to football's growing trend of big corporations taking up slices of the world game at the expense of smaller teams.
Round 25 was a weekend of football that had plenty of action. There were five games due to the Central Coast Mariners vs Adelaide…
Arsenal fans were outraged that Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson got off scot-free for this challenge in the Gunners' 5-0 win.
Kai Havertz has scored twice against his former team and Ben White also got a brace as Arsenal brushed aside a dismal Chelsea side…
