Arthur Diles was at pains to settle for a point against Adelaide United in Round 19 of the Isuzu UTE A-League, despite the result making it four games unbeaten for Melbourne Victory.
The hosts led their Original Rivals in the first half thanks to Keegan Jelacic’s well-taken goal, his fifth scored during his maiden season at the Club, laid on by Juan Mata’s 10th assist of the campaign.
But United would bite back before the break, levelling through Yaya Dukuly as a game that ebbed and flowed in the direction of both teams ended all-square at AAMI Park on Friday night.
Speaking during his post-match press conference, Victory boss Diles reflected on the encounter, believing more was there for the taking for the Boys in Blue, who put in another big effort to sign off February.
“Maybe if you look at the chances in the match, I think we probably deserve more. We’ve missed maybe two or three really good chances in the second half. Take the point? Absolutely. But I think we were good to get all three tonight. But it wasn’t to be.
“It is always interesting to see how they back-up off a short turnaround. We had a big match last week, which takes a lot out of you, and you’re up for another derby [tonight], which you’ve got to be physically and mentally ready for.”
Victory return to action in a week’s time, heading on their travels interstate to face another of their familiar foes, Sydney FC.
The Big Blue takes place at Allianz Stadium on Saturday, March 7, kick-off 7:35pm AEDT, and Diles is ready for the next crunch clash.
“It’s a big challenge in front of us. We have to recover from this because it was a short turnaround, and we’ve got a nice eight-day turnaround now.
“There’s going to be a few bruised and battered bodies there that need those extra couple of days to recover, which is timely for us.
“We’ll do everything we can and make sure we do everything correctly, that we turn up next week ready for another derby. It’s a third one in a row, and in the end, it’s also a privilege that you play in these matches, and we’ve got to be ready for that.”
Watch Diles’ full press conference below.
