Week 5 Preview
Already into Week Five of the 2016/17 season and A-League fans are in store for another exciting weekend of top flight Australian football as a host of teams look to continue their good form whilst others will looking to revive their season with a much needed victory.
Brisbane Roar will be fighting for a top four spot this Friday night when they host Melbourne City, and will also be looking to make it three in a row after coming off back-to-back victories. Wellington Phoenix are still searching for their first win of the season, and will kick off Saturday when they take on Newcastle Jets, whilst Sydney FC will look to make it five in a row when they clash with Melbourne Victory in a battle of the heavyweights.
A double header on Sunday will see defending premiers Adelaide United attempt to break their three game losing streak against Central Coast Mariner; a team who has found themselves in unfamiliar territory this season with inconsistent performances. To round off the weekend, Perth Glory will look to hold onto fourth place when they verse Western Sydney Wanderers at home.
Brisbane Roar vs. Melbourne City
Friday 04 November 6.50 pm LOCAL
Suncorp Stadium
Brisbane Roar has managed to find some consistency early in their campaign, recording back-to-back victories including a hard fought win over Perth Glory last week. They will look to continue their good run of form at home, as they are undefeated in their last 9 Hyundai A-League games with 7 wins and two draws.
City bounced back to form last weekend when they added more salt into the wounds of Adelaide United with a 2-1 victory, with striker Bruno Fornaroli scoring two fantastic goals to seal the three points. They have won both their away games so far this season and will be looking for their fourth win of the year this Friday night.
With back-to-back wins for the Roar and City coming off a convincing victory, this is the perfect way to kick off Week Five with a blockbuster at Suncorp Stadium; can’t separate the two considering recent form.
Tip: Brisbane Roar 1 Melbourne City 1
Best Bet: Brisbane Roar +1 Handicap ($1.57)
Did you know? Melbourne City have won both of their away games so far this Hyundai A-League season, the last time they won more away fixtures in a row was in a run of three during December 2011
Wellington Phoenix vs. Newcastle Jets
Saturday 05 November 7.35pm LOCAL
Westpac Stadium
Phoenix slumped to a fourth straight loss against Victory on Monday night and are well and truly sitting last on the competition ladder. They hold the worst defensive record so far in the competition; conceding 10 goals in 4 games whilst also holding the second worst losing streak in the clubs history with six consecutive losses.
Newcastle are enjoying a reasonable start to their season despite recording their first loss of the year against ladder leaders Sydney FC. They can take a heap of confidence heading into this encounter, having won their past three fixtures against the Jets, and will hope to bounce back to form to continue their season in the right way.
Wellington look disjointed in both attack and defence and it will be interesting to see how they respond after their thumping 6-1 loss last week. In saying that, Newcastle are also coming off a loss, and I think they will come back to form in this encounter.
Tip: Wellington Phoenix 0 Newcastle Jets 2
Best bet: Newcastle United win ($3.50)
Did you know? Phoenix star Gui Finkler has created 13 chances so far this Hyundai A-League season, more than any other player, while Newcastle’s Andrew Hoole has created the second most (11).
Sydney FC vs. Melbourne Victory
Saturday 05 November 7.50pm LOCAL
Allianz Stadium
Sydney FC have continued their undefeated run to start the season, claiming their fourth straight victory after defeating Newcastle 2-0 last weekend. Their most impressive statistic is undoubtedly their run of clean sheets, with Sydney yet to concede a goal in their last five Hyundai A-League fixtures. They also boast the best attacking record this year with 11 goals so far, led by striker Filip Holosko who has three goals to his name this season.
Melbourne Victory are coming off a commanding 6-1 thrashing of Wellington Phoenix, and will be looking to make it three wins in a row after coming off back-to-back victories. Bersart Berisha is coming off another stellar performance for the Melbourne powerhouse, scoring a hat trick in his side’s win last week and will be looking to continue his good form against Sydney; having scored three goals in his last four appearances against them.
This game will be the cornerstone of a weekend of blockbusters, and it’s hard to separate the two considering their form heading into this fixture; Sydney to make it five wins a row despite conceding their first goal of the season.
Tip: Sydney FC 2 Melbourne Victory 1
Best bet: Totals goals over 2.5 ($1.72)
Did you know? Melbourne Victory are undefeated in their last nine Hyundai A-League games against Sydney FC (W4, D5) and have scored 3+ goals in four of their last six encounters with the Sky Blues.
Adelaide United vs. Central Coast Mariners
Sunday 06 November 4.30pm LOCAL
Coopers Stadium
You could say that Adelaide United are in unfamiliar territory considering their run to the finals last season, but they actually find themselves higher on the ladder than they were this time last year. They are coming off three consecutive losses and definitely aren’t playing to their full potential, but can take confidence in knowing they have won seven of the last eight fixtures against Mariners.
Central Coast Mariners are one of the three teams who are yet to claim a victory so far this season, and are coming of a tight 1-all draw against Western Sydney Wanderers. They boast the second worst defence in the competition having conceded 9 goals so far this year, and have also made the least amount of shots of any team (36). They will be looking to bounce back to form with a strong performance against an opposing team who is also struggling to find their feet and sit in a similar position on the ladder
It should be a tight contest with both teams searching for their first victory, however Adelaide should be the one to do so and be too strong at home despite another courageous performance from Central Coast.
Tip: Adelaide United 3 Central Coast Mariners 1
Best bet: Half time result (Adelaide United @ $1.82)
Did you know? The last time the Mariners won on the road against Adelaide was in March 2013; they’ve since conceded 15 goals in five consecutive away defeats against the Reds since.
Perth Glory vs. Western Sydney Wanderers
Sunday 06 November 7.00pm LOCAL
NIB Stadium
Perth Glory will be hoping to bounce back to form this week when they face Western Sydney, after collapsing late in their game last week to go down 2-1 to Brisbane Roar. They head into this game being undefeated in their last 8 games at home, and will look to continue their run of form with the likes of Andy Keogh, Adam Taggart and Diego Castro contributing seven of their nine goals this year, whilst boasting the best shooting accuracy of any team with (58%).
Wanderers could only salvage a draw last weekend against the Mariners courtesy of a late defensive collapse in the back end of the second half despite an early lead.They are coming off back-to-back drawsand will look no further than Brendon Santalab for some attacking inspiration, with the in-form striker netting three goals this year which happens to be 60% of his teams total so far this season.
It will definitely be a close contest considering the potential of each team with quality across the park, we can expect a strong response from Perth Glory considering their loss last week and might run away with a tight victory here.
Tip: Perth Glory 1 Western Sydney Wanderers 0
Best Bet: Perth Glory win ($2.00)
Did you know? Western Sydney Wanderers have conceded only 12.5% (1 of 8) of their goals in the first half of games so far this season, only cross town rivals Sydney FC - who are yet to concede a goal - have let in fewer in the opening half.
Blue Bet Words: Andre Cupido
