Substitute Apostolos Stamatelopoulos netted with less than five minutes remaining to earn Adelaide United a thrilling 1-1 draw with Western Sydney Wanderers at ANZ Stadium on Wednesday night.
In an entertaining affair, fullback Jack Clisby scored his maiden Hyundai A-League goal just after the break to fire Western Sydney Wanderers ahead.
Adelaide fought their way back into the contest and went close on a number of occasions in the second stanza without finding the breakthrough.
But less than two minutes after coming on, Stamatelopoulos popped up from a corner to bury the equaliser as the Reds earned a deserved share of the spoils.
GOALS
1-0 Western Sydney Wanderers: Jack Clisby, 52’
Roly Bonevacia beat the offside trap and powered in behind the Reds defence before squaring to Clisby who calmly slotted home at the back post.
1-1 Adelaide United: Apostolos Stamatelopoulos, 86’
Ryan Strain knocked Isaias’s corner back into the danger area with Stamatelopoulos reacting quickest to bury a clinical finish from close range.
STORY OF THE GAME
- 5’ CHANCE – Reds winger Nikola Mileusnic fired a dangerous ball across the face of goal with Ryan Kitto denied a certain goal by a desperate Raúl Llorente.
- 7’ CHANCE – Adelaide striker Baba Diawara controlled the ball on the turn before firing wide of Vedran Janjetovic’s goal.
- 15’ POST – Wanderers marquee Oriol Riera was played in behind before smacking his powerful effort into the crossbar. The rebound was controlled by Steve Lustica but his strike was spectacularly cleared off the line by Jordan Elsey.
- 25’ SAVE – Wanderers’ Mark Bridge found space in the box but his effort was well-saved by Daniel Margush.
- 30’ SAVE – Diawara pounced on a loose ball and forced Janjetovic into a smart save from a narrow angle.
- 45’ CHANCE – Kearyn Baccus put Bridge through on goal but the Wanderers striker’s first-time effort sailed well over the bar.
- 52’ GOAL –Wanderers midfielder Roly Bonevacia found space down the right before picking out an unmarked Jack Clisby who tapped in to make it 1-0.
- 62’ INJURY – Reds striker Baba Diawara was forced off with a leg complaint.
- 71’ CHANCE – A lofted cross was well met by Ryan Strain at the back post but the youngster’s header couldn’t beat Janjetovic.
- 75’ CHANCE – Mark Ochieng wriggled free of his marker inside the box but fired his shot just wide of the post. Big chance to make it 1-1.
- 86’ GOAL – Substitute Apostolos Stamatelopoulos pounced on a loose ball inside the six yard box to bring the Reds level.
- FULL TIME – Both sides pushed for a late winner but they couldn’t be split as the game ended in a 1-1 draw.
This article was originally published at: www.a-league.com.au/news/super-sub-stamatelopoulos-strikes-late-reds-earn-draw-wanderers
