Melbourne Victory Men prepare for a thrilling Big Blue match-up with Sydney FC on the road.
The big games come thick and fast for Victory straight off the back of the Christmas Derby one-all draw with Melbourne City, travelling to Sydney for a Big Blue doubleheader on Saturday.
Victory has enjoyed great success in the Big Blue rivalry in recent times, notably winning two and drawing one of their three matches against Sydney FC last season.
Melbourne Victory:
An unchanged Victory will take positives from a strong performance in the Christmas Derby under Head Coach Arthur Diles, creating several chances that certainly could have seen the Navy Blue run away as victors on another day.
Wingers Reno Piscopo and Daniel Arzani have been key chance creators for Victory, along with Zinedine Machach who will certainly be a player to watch coming up against Sydney FC – notably scoring in all three fixtures against the Sky Blues last season.
Ryan Teague and Jordi Valadon will look to continue their excellent midfield partnership and utilise their technical abilities to play through Sydney FC’s press, while also providing coverage to the rock-solid defensive line who have only conceded five goals this season – the least amount conceded for any team in the league so far.
Sydney FC:
The heroics of Douglas Costa narrowly prevented a third-straight loss in the Isuzu Ute A-League for Sydney FC, who claimed an important point in their recent 3-3 draw against Adelaide United.
Full of attacking talent, finding the back of the net has not been an issue for Ufuk Talay’s side. Boasting frontline depth consisting of Joe Lolley, Patryk Klimala, Anas Ouahim, Jaiden Kucharski, Max Burgess, Patrick Wood and the aforementioned Douglas Costa – the Sky Blues are blessed with quality in the final third.
However, issues on the defensive end have been a clear mark against Sydney FC this season. Conceding 17 goals in their eight matches so far (second most conceded in the entire league), Talay’s attacking and high-pressing football leaves his side vulnerable to counter-attacks at times.
Round Ten – Melbourne Victory FC Squad:
2. Jason GERIA, 3. Adama TRAORE, 5. Brendan HAMILL, 6. Ryan TEAGUE, 7. Daniel ARZANI, 8. Zinedine MACHACH, 9. Nikolaos VERGOS, 10. Bruno FORNAROLI, 11. Clerismario SANTOS RODRIGUES, 14. Jordi VALADON, 16. Joshua INSERRA, 17. Nishan VELUPILLAY, 18. Fabian MONGE, 19. Jing REEC, 21. Roderick MIRANDA, 22. Joshua RAWLINS, 25. Jack DUNCAN, 27. Reno PISCOPO, 28. Kasey BOS, 30. Daniel GRASKOSKI
Ins: 16.Joshua INSERRA (promoted), 19. Jing REEC (promoted)
Outs: nil
Unavailable: nil
Match Details
Sydney FC vs Melbourne Victory
Saturday 28 December
7:35pm
Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Broadcast: Paramount+ How To Watch
