It is an interstate clash with an edge as Melbourne Victory travel to face Western Sydney Wanderers at ANZ Stadium.
Get your tickets to the match here.
This Saturday night match-up may not affect the ladder placings, but the Wanderers can still make life difficult for their opponents with Victory keen for a positive result before they begin their finals quest to clinch consecutive championships.
It has been a largely positive second half of the campaign for Markus Babbel’s side, with a host of promising youngsters laying the foundations for success next season.
They will, however, be desperate to give their home crowd something to cheer after a disappointing 3-1 loss to wooden-spooners Central Coast Mariners last Saturday.
Wanderers will also be keen to bid farewell in style to club legend Mark Bridge, who will walk off into the sunset after this game. Bridge notched his 250th Hyundai A-League appearance against Mariners last weekend, scoring Wanderers’ consolation goal from the penalty spot into the bargain.
Markus Babbel has added three players to the squad with Mathieu Cordier, Kwame Yeboah and Tate Russell all promoted.
The Red & Black will be without defender Brendan Hamill who suffered a concussion in the Wanderers last match against the Mariners.
For their part, Victory will be keen to end the regular season on high after they slipped up against original rivals Adelaide United 1-0 at Coopers Stadium on Good Friday.
Back-to-back Hyundai A-League games on the road will present a challenge for Kevin Muscat, who has also had to juggle the club’s midweek visit from Chinese giants Guangzhou Evergrande in the AFC Champions League.
Throw in a match against a Wanderers side eager for revenge after suffering a 4-0 thumping earlier this season and the Big V could be in for a tough week.
Mark Bridge nets in his 250th Hyundai A-League game, against Central Coast Mariners last weekend
Key Opta stats
- Western Sydney Wanderers have only managed to register one win in their last seven home games against Melbourne Victory (D1 L5).
- Victory have lost consecutive Hyundai A-League games on the road. They have not tasted more defeats in a row away since December 2015 (four straight away losses).
- Wanderers attacker Roly Bonevacia has logged more Hyundai A-League assists than anybody else in 2019. The ex-Wellington star has recorded seven of them so far in this calendar year.
