SM
Watford vs. Leeds: 10 hrs 7 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
MC
Australian A-League | Gameweek 2
Jan 16, 2021 at 8.10am UK
AAMI Park
WU

Melbourne City
2 - 1
Western Utd

Noone (32'), MacLaren (84')
Metcalfe (58')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Vujica (22')
Sanchez (42')

Preview: Melbourne City vs. Western United - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Melbourne City vs. Western United - prediction, team news, lineups: ID:430569: from db_amp
Sports Mole previews Saturday's Australian A-League clash between Melbourne City and Western United, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Melbourne City host Western United in the Australian A-League on Saturday morning as last season's beaten Grand Finalists look to bounce back from defeat.

Mark Rudan's men will be hoping to secure their first three points of the new campaign, but a trip to AAMI Park is about as tough a task as they will face all season.


Match preview

City started 2020-21 with a 1-0 victory away to Brisbane Roar despite Adrian Luna receiving a red card with over 20 minutes left to play.

They were unable to follow that result up when they travelled to Adelaide United after City fell to Tomi Juric's and Stefan Mauk's strikes once they were reduced to 10 men yet again.

Erick Mombaerts's side have a 100% record against their upcoming opponents, having won all four of their previous encounters.

The last time the two teams met was in the A-League semi-finals last year, which resulted in a convincing 2-0 victory for Melbourne City.

Mombaerts's men will be hoping to repeat that scoreline over the weekend and show their domestic rivals that last week's performance was merely a blip.

Western United were held to a 0-0 stalemate by Adelaide in their first game of the season and will be hoping to get on the scoresheet for the first time this time around.

Rudan's side have recruited well over the summer, bringing in Spanish duo Iker Guarrotxena and Victor Sanchez.

The pair should add some quality to the likes of Alessandro Diamanti. The former West Ham United midfielder bagged eight goals and provided seven assists in all competitions throughout 2019-20.

With the extra quality within their ranks, Western United supporters will be hoping their side can claim their first A-League title this time around.

Melbourne City Australian A-League form: WL

Western United Australian A-League form: D


Team News

Melbourne City will be without left-back Scott Jamieson after the defender picked up a red card last week.

Winger Andrew Nabbout is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury and is unavailable for the visit of Western United.

Rudan has a fully-fit squad to choose from and will be desperate to claim United's maiden victory over City at the weekend.

The Victoria-based outfit's new Spanish signing Guarrotxena has completed his quarantine period and could make his A-League debut this weekend.

Melbourne City possible starting lineup:
Glover; Marrone, Good, Griffiths, Garuccio; Tilio, O'Neill, Berenguer; Noone, Maclaren, Metcalfe

Western United possible starting lineup:
Kurto; Calver, Uskok, Imai; Pain, Lustica, Sanchez, Pierias; Diamanti, Berisha, Guarrotxena


We say: Melbourne City 2-1 Western United

Both of these two teams will have title aspirations this year, and with the talent of Sanchez and Guarrotxena added to Diamanti, there is no doubt that Western United have bolstered their squad over the summer.

Nevertheless, Melbourne remain the favourites, especially on home soil, and should have just enough quality to come away with the three points.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:data




amp_article__430569 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2021-01-14 22:30:58:
html db last update - 2021-03-11 11:35:23 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Read more!
Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .