loriente Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 1 minute ago, n i k o said: Adelaide is the best in form team. Don't worry about their ladder position, they're what, 8 games unbeaten, winning 6 of those. Perth has been getting better and better and are a real bogey team for anyone. Brisbane have been in a slump form the last few games, so I believe they're in a dangerous position if these teams continue to perform well and they don't recover. Plus they have Sydney away who will be just as desperate to make up for the loss last round. Adelaide have had a good streak but look who they've played in those 8 games. Been a very easy run. Beating Sydney back in December is the only really impressive result in their streak. Beating Brisbane last week was reasonably impressive but Brisbane have gone full retard without Maclaren and Borello. Brisbane have gotten their Olyroos boys back now, they should be putting CCM, Newy and Perth to the sword. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n i k o Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 1 minute ago, loriente said: Adelaide have had a good streak but look who they've played in those 8 games. Been a very easy run. Beating Sydney back in December is the only really impressive result in their streak. Beating Brisbane last week was reasonably impressive but Brisbane have gone full retard without Maclaren and Borello. Brisbane have gotten their Olyroos boys back now, they should be putting CCM, Newy and Perth to the sword. Look your probably right they will put those teams to the sword but its just never that simple given how poorly they've performed(defended) the last two games. For Adelaide they not only have momentum but those easy teams you mention they've beaten, not just by a goal, but extremely convincingly. They're scoring for fun. The other performance to show how mentally they are a much better unit is drawing to WSW away. Time will tell, but it'll be an interesting either way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heart_fan10 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Victory to not get a win in the next 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
japiedog Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 To paraphrase Tony999 5-0 win, next  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embee Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 18 minutes ago, japiedog said: To paraphrase Tony999 Something something Samaras, next  Fixed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deviant Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 So where's everyone meeting before the match, in parra 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raw10 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 33 minutes ago, Deviant said: So where's everyone meeting before the match, in parra There is a facebook page for travelling fans called 'Melb City Travelling Fans' . Feel free to connect with people that have already gone up to Parra.. I believe about a dozen from this group Is up there. FYI, some non travelling fans will be at the Imperial Hotel tonight for the match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deviant Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Excuse my ignorance, but whats the point of having a topic here then? lol  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
playmaker Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 We cant play are 3 5 2 tonight, I have a bad vibe. Need to play or 4 5 1 or a 4 3 3 with Zullo and Harry on the wings and Franjic and Clisby WBs. Malik DM sitting deep.    Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
playmaker Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 21 hours ago, neio said: To be honest I wouldn't be overly concerned about castelen, for all his good work running with ball he fucks up shot or cross. And if he does get cross right piavaccari is usually offside anyway  25 Total Open Play Crosses 9 Succ. Crosses 3 Assists 24 Chances Created  Maybe a little concerned seeing that he also turned the game when he came on last time we played. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nate Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 I'd be happy with a draw tbh given the circumstances Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAM10 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 I would start with Malik instead of Hughes. The rest, same as v the nix. Caceres with more freedom to push forward to combine with Mooy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kinnibari Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 5 hours ago, n i k o said: Quite possibly. But out of al the teams around us we have the best run of games over the next 5 games.  Brisbane have the best run, I'd have thought. Bad run for Victory, hope they crash and burn.  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MHFC-FAN Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 1 minute ago, Kinnibari said: Brisbane have the best run, I'd have thought. Bad run for Victory, hope they crash and burn. Â Looks like Victory and Sydney have the toughest next 5 games, plus with ACL commitments coming up it will make things quite interesting... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murfy1 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Melbourne City finally fulfilling potential as A-League super club  January 28, 2016 Matt Windley  JOHN van ât Schip pleaded for patience. Perhaps we should have listened. It was October 7, an eve-of-season interview with the Herald Sun, and vanât Schip, burdened by an unrivalled injury list even before Round 1, was typically calm at his clubâs $15 million Bundoora training base. An off-season recruitment drive had delivered a change of energy. Previously, he said, there had been âtoo many players that are here for having a good timeâ, now the team had âwinnersâ there âto win prizesâ. It mattered little to him that the likes of Harry Novillo, Ivan Franjic, Michael Zullo and Aaron Hughes â players who have since become key cogs of his starting line-up â would be absentees for considerable amounts of time. âThe competition is long,â vanât Schip said. âOf course we want to start well and itâs not going to be easy looking at the first two games and playing against the two grand finalists from last season. âBut we just have to be there from the start knowing that weâre going to be very competitive over the whole year.â It had become fashionable to lay the boots into vanât Schip. And indeed, after an unpalatable FFA Cup semi-final disaster in Perth and a 3-0 home loss to Western Sydney that he described as the worst in his time at the club, the knives were out for the Dutchman. But credit where creditâs due, heâs turned it around. Since the Wanderers debacle City has won six games, drawn three and lost just once, scoring a staggering 28 goals in the process. Out is the old 4-3-3 system and in is a new 3-5-2 â borne from a tactical switch midway through the first half of the January 2 Sydney game â which has displayed vanât Schipâs willingness to adapt on the run. Those âwinnersâ he spoke of have added steel to a once-brittle club that had been mired in mediocrity. Hughes and Thomas Sorensen are experienced English Premier League campaigners. Franjic and Zullo, former members of all-conquering Brisbane sides, have linked up again with Roar championship winner Erik Paartalu. Then of course thereâs the combative, win-at-all costs striker in Bruno Fornaroli who has taken the competition by storm. have created a staggering amount of competition for spots that is compounded by the fact that, finally, the clubâs injury list is down to just two long-term inhabitants â Corey Gameiro and Connor Chapman. City plays the Wanderers again on Friday night, but this time in the intimidating cauldron of Pirtek Stadium. A first-versus-second clash that could well be a grand final preview, the game is one of the biggest in the clubâs history. Previously youâd never have thought it possible for City to win. Now, with those âwinnersâ being backed by their unflappable coach, nothing seems impossible.  http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/football/melbourne-city-finally-fulfilling-potential-as-aleague-super-club/news-story/f3682b444b57303bfa48e7c78f7a3547#load-story-comments  City v Wanderers: A burgeoning rivalry  29 January 2016  Friday Night brings with it not just a top of the table clash, but also a growing rivalry between two of the youngest clubs in the competition. Itâs easy to forget that the Wanderers and Melbourne City remain the adolescents of the Hyundai A-League, which makes the current position of both clubs all the more commendable as they face off tonight. City and Wanderers can mix it with the best and worst of the league but to belong to the elite as both clubs have aspired to, you must beat the elite. And despite the controversial manner of the victory, City made the significant statement of intent they were after in a clash that lived up to its billing as one of the matches of the season.  Incidentally, the match highlighted how far Western Sydney Wanderers versus Melbourne City has flown under the radar in the grand nexus of Hyundai A-League rivalries.  Often relegated to the backseat in the face of the so-called âBig Blueâ, for what this burgeoning rivalry lacks in commercial pulling power it makes up for in its inherent capacity to produce a memorable moment. Although it might play second fiddle to the older and bluer siblings, itâs a rivalry that has grown organically and has remained hugely relevant in the eyes of the viewing public. Thatâs no mean feat.  It might not grab the headlines like the leagueâs seasoned rivalries but this clash is more than capable of supplying one or two of its own. After two outstanding matches this season itâs clear that thereâs something in the alchemy of this fixture that guarantees fireworks, theatre or plain chaos of some shape or form.  The most recent incident threatened to take the Hyundai A-Leagueâs youngest feud to new levels of antagonism after the Wanderers were denied a winning goal that would have extended an unbeaten run to 11 games.  Itâs upon this sense of lingering injustice in the heat of battle that rivalries can be hardened. Thereâs a score to settle tonight and the side has history on their side in their bid to avenge Round 14âs 3-2 loss.  In 11 meetings between the two sides Melbourne have won just twice â and never away from home.  Back at the scene of the clubsâ first showdown, both the Wanderers and City have done a lot of growing up since their late introduction.  It might not be the Melbourne v Sydney derby 2.0, but the momentum of this clash continues to gather with each passing season. It has the potential to be truly explosive.  http://www.fourfourtwo.com/au/news/city-v-wanderers-burgeoning-rivalry#:PDp8-796TpA9EA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 If Zullo and Franjic both have good games then I think we might just win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MHFC-FAN Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 12 minutes ago, Murfy1 said: Â In 11 meetings between the two sides Melbourne have won just twice â and never away from home. Â This is a little worrying...we have pretty average records against almost all the teams in the A league... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strider Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 CIty vs Wanderers is a new derby Robin Hood derby Cos we're rich and they're poor westie grubs 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 2 minutes ago, strider said: CIty vs Wanderers is a new derby Robin Hood derby Cos we're rich and they're poor westie grubs So they are stealing a win then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strider Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 4 minutes ago, Dylan said: So they are stealing a win then? no we're throwing gold chains at them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HEARTinator Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 LOLz in the Matt Windley article, JvS is quoted as saying that: Previously, he said, there had been âtoo many players that are here for having a good timeâ, now the team had âwinnersâ there âto win prizesâ. I thought he should have been talking about himself IMO  He has always been quick to blame players for being "scared", etc, etc but he hasn't been quick to say "well holy shit, maybe I've just been a pretty poor manager after all."  It's been the attitude of the new lads that have turned things around not the man management skills of JvS. Would really like to see NRMAWSWdogs get routed tonight but will settle for a hard fought draw. Go top of the table tonight and we go a fair way to changing the perception of the club from simply making up the numbers in the HAL to fair dinkum contenders. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DFG_82 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Hoping for a win, Think it will end up 1-1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony999 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) Why are some so pessimistic? On paper out players are way better..... but then again on paper they have a much more intelligent manager. Regardless, 3-0 win. Next. Edited January 29, 2016 by Tony999 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murfy1 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) One big change from our last match against WSW, which was less than 3 weeks ago BTW, is our backline. Last time we had: Retre - Kisnorbo - Hughes - Clisby - Garuccio  Tonight we'll have: Franjic - Kisnorbo - Hughes - Melling/Clisby/Malik - Zullo   Our 2 fullbacks/wingbacks, Franjic and Zullo, are clearly a big improvement. Against WSW, Melbourne City was a bit fragile in wide areas, hence why Castelen could cause such havoc when he was subbed on. So with Retre & Garuccio being changed for Franjic & Zullo, in theory our main weakness against WSW last time should be much less weak.  2 other key issues to the game IMO: - The midfield battle. Mooy-Paartalu-Caceres(probably) for us vs. Nichols-Andreu-Dimas for them is a very interesting 3 vs 3 battle in midfield. Whichever midfield performs will likely have more possession, and the balance of possession will be key in this game. In the WSW 3 - City 0 loss, WSW had 55.2% possession & City had 44.8%. In the last match City had 47.1% and WSW had 52.9%, much more even and City have the finishing ability to win with roughly even possession (and I'd wager that City have effectively won every game where we've had the majority of possession this season). - Finishing. Melbourne City averages the most shots, most on target and highest conversion rate. Whereas WSW's attack is much more profligate. If the teams perform to their finishing percentages over the season then Melbourne City should have a significant advantage due to its clinical finishing.   Some wildcards are the slightly shorter turnaround for Melbourne City, and whether that will allow WSW to gain advantage in the later stages of the game. Also, if Melbourne City plays the new recruits Caceres, Malik and Fitzgerald, and how they perform, especially since they've had more time to settle into the club and should be able to perform at about 100% now.   JVS said, twice this week, that the club doesn't need anymore signings. The result and performance tonight will indicate whether that's true or not. Especially given that Melbourne City could easily end up playing a grand final against WSW in Western Sydney, the team should be able to play a good game tonight if the team is going to match the club's ambitions for this season. However, if tonight doesn't go as planned then IMO the club shouldn't be afraid to dip into the transfer market one final time (before it closes in 96 hours) to ensure that the club can be successful this season. Big match tonight for the club, and a lot can be read into this match and how it plays out. Edited January 29, 2016 by Murfy1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tesla Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Unfortunately we will not win tonight. And if we somehow do win tonight, then we are going to win the league and finals. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melburnian Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Can't see why we can't win and people are saying best we can hope for is a draw? On paper we have a superior team. Playing with unmatched confidence. In Bruno, Harry and Aaron we have an attack that can win games when we don't produce much. Then having Zullo and Franjic hitting form adds to that attack. We have seasoned leaders all over the park now. Will we win? Who knows? All I'm saying is we can. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DFG_82 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 1 minute ago, Tesla said: Unfortunately we will not win tonight. And if we somehow do win tonight, then we are going to win the league and finals. and JVS is re-signed for 5 years? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tesla Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Melburnian said: Can't see why we can't win and people are saying best we can hope for is a draw? On paper we have a superior team. Playing with unmatched confidence. In Bruno, Harry and Aaron we have an attack that can win games when we don't produce much. Then having Zullo and Franjic hitting form adds to that attack. We have seasoned leaders all over the park now. Will we win? Who knows? All I'm saying is we can. Of course we can, even the bottom teams in the vast majority of leagues win games and the best teams lose games. Anyone can win a soccer match, especially in the A-League, and especially in a game of 1st vs 2nd. But it's unlikely for a number of reasons, I'd put our chance of winning this game at about 20%. 6 minutes ago, DFG_82 said: and JVS is re-signed for 5 years? I'd prefer he doesn't but I suppose he can see out his current contract instead of getting fired. Edited January 29, 2016 by Tesla Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murfy1 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Hughes is injured lolz Just looking at the WSW bench. Poppa is clearly banking on a 2nd half like the last game Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knutty Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Maybe we released Hughes too lol and will announce 3 new visa players Monday!  ( Marquee, guest plus under cap visa)  Dreams ^^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kinnibari Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Is he actually injured or just being rested? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n i k o Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 3 minutes ago, Kinnibari said: Is he actually injured or just being rested? Yes, 'rested.' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bt50 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 3 minutes ago, Kinnibari said: Is he actually injured or just being rested? Could be tactical? They might deem Malik superior and Mellings pace essential against WSW. Then when it comes to bench Clisby is more flexible and is therefore a better option? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
possiblygeorge Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 2 minutes ago, n i k o said: Yes, 'rested.' Should just be rested forever idgaf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victards Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Very very very nervous for this one. A win tonight and we'll set ourselves up perfectly for the rest of the season, bring it on! Come on lads!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n i k o Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) Id rather in this position battling it out for top position than trying to make up the numbers trying to scrape into the top 6. Edited January 29, 2016 by n i k o 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hakz7 Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 A loss or even a draw could see us drop to 4th by the end of the round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Habitual Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 We've got this, relax! 4-2 good guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haz Posted January 29, 2016 Report Share Posted January 29, 2016 Hughes out due to Calf soreness The team arrived late to the ground because the bus got lost Novillo complaining of muscle soreness    Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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