Melbourne Victory Men prepare for a crucial Melbourne Derby against their City rivals at AAMI Park on Saturday, February 22.
Following a hard-fought 1-0 win against Wellington Phoenix in their previous game, Victory will be keen to continue their form at AAMI Park.
Victory has enjoyed the upper hand over City in their recent meetings, notably remaining undefeated in the Derby since 2022 – winning in four of the seven clashes from 2023 onwards.
Melbourne Victory:
Securing all three points against a defensively resolute Phoenix side last week in the rainy conditions on home soil, Victory will hold their heads high after jumping back up to third place in the Isuzu Ute A-League ladder.
Nikos Vergos’ well-placed header proved to be the winning goal for the Vuck, a great reward for his work upfront – finishing off Santos’ excellent cross that saw him register his first assist of the season.
A key positive from the result for Arthur Diles’ side was yet another clean sheet kept – a seventh of the season that sees Victory with the tied second-most shutouts in the league alongside the weekend’s upcoming opposition.
Mid-week contract extensions awarded to youthful duo, Kasey Bos and Jordi Valadon, could provide a further boost to the side for the upcoming Derby – a great reward for two key players who have progressed through the ranks at Victory.
Victory has encountered City twice already this season; defeating the Citizens 3-1 thanks to three early goals in Round 2, as well as a 1-1 draw in Round 9 that saw Victory rather unfortunate to not come away with three points.
Round 20 Squad:
1. Mitch LANGERAK, 3. Adama TRAORE, 4. Lachlan JACKSON, 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, 17. Nishan VELUPILLAY, 18. Fabian MONGE, 19. Jing REEC, 21. Roderick MIRANDA, 22. Joshua RAWLINS, 27. Reno PISCOPO, 28. Kasey BOS, 30. Daniel GRASKOSKI, 40. Christian SICILIANO
Ins: Jing REEC (promoted), 30. Daniel GRASKOSKI (promoted), 40. Christian SICILIANO (promoted)
Outs: 25. Jack DUNCAN (injured), 26. Luka KOLIC (omitted)
Unavailable: 16. Joshua INSERRA (international duty)
Melbourne City:
Starting the season strong after a slew of key departures, led by a youthful contingent that shocked various A-League clubs, City find themselves sat in fourth place – narrowly trailing Victory.
After experiencing three straight losses on the road to Auckland FC, Macarthur and Adelaide United respectively; City’s 1-0 win over Perth Glory back at AAMI Park put an end to a difficult run of form.
While consistently a top-scoring side in the league over recent seasons, City have managed to score just 22 goals this season – the lowest amongst the league’s current top eight placed sides.
However, City has impressed on the defensive end; conceding the second-fewest goals in the league this season with 15 – only behind league leaders Auckland FC.
