Week 22 of the A-League boasts five quality contests, with something on the line in nearly every one.
The round is underway with what promises to be a quality contest between the Roar and Wanderers in Brisbane on Friday, but it will reach a peak on Saturday night when the Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC meet for the 53rd Big Blue.
Three weeks ago, I wouldn’t have been caught dead saying this, but one of the matches of the round looks like materialising first-up on Friday night between the Roar and Wanderers.
To their credit, the Roar have been one of the steadier sides in 2020 and they were unlucky not to take anything from last week’s low-scoring loss to City in Melbourne. They remain sixth on the ladder and a win this week would give them a lovely buffer over the Wanderers.
The Wanderers have returned to excellent form recently and enter this off the back of their biggest win of the season – a 1-0 triumph over the league-leading Sydney FC. There is no doubt that this represents another excellent opportunity for them
Betting suggests that this will be the most one-sided match in Week 22 of the A-League.
The Reds haven’t been particularly convincing in recent weeks, but their worst form has still probably been better than most of what Western United have managed to produce. It was another loss in Week 21, but this is an easier task for them.
Western United recorded a rare win on Sunday, but it is extremely tough to trust the form out of any Central Coast Mariners match this season and I am happy to put a line through it.
If Adelaide are any chance of making a competitive run through the finals, they’ll be comfortably winning matches like this one.
The Big Blue is always an outstanding contest and given the performances mustered by both the Victory and Sydney FC last week, it looks like being a particularly exciting affair.
The Victory are amidst a season to forget, but they’ll take winning form into the Big Blue after a lovely win over Adelaide United on Saturday. They’ve now lost only one of the last four matches, but they’ll need to pull something out of the bag to beat a wounded Sydney FC.
The Sky Blues suffered a shock defeat to the Wanderers in last weekend’s Derby, only their second of the season, but they do remain head and shoulders above everyone else. They have to do better than last week, but it’s hard imagining them dropping two in a row.
The Wellington Phoenix are offered this week’s soft kill when they travel to the Central Coast on Sunday afternoon.
I gave the Mariners a real hope of winning last week, but they dragged their feet down to Geelong and were absolutely destroyed by an out of form opponent, to the tune of 6-2. They have little hope of reversing their fortunes against a better club this week.
I can’t understand how the Phoenix have been priced at even money, other than being an away side, in a competition that has rarely given the home team any real advantage this season.
Two top-four sides will go toe to toe in the nation’s west on Sunday, in what is set to be an excellent contest to end Week 22 of the A-League.
The Glory are actually winless in their last two and have recorded only one win in their last five league matches, opening the door for City to take something from this tough away trip. Last week’s loss to the Jets in Newcastle was particularly damning and they’d need to improve tenfold for this result to be a ‘sure thing’.
City have bounced backed into form, culminating in a tough win over formed side the Brisbane Roar in Week 21. They are over the odds to win this match as outsiders but will need to be at their best regardless.
I’m happy to sit on the fence with this one, as well.