The following are previews with betting tips for Round 5 of the 2022/23 A-League Mens season.
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Friday, November 4
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Melbourne Victory v Newcastle Jets7:45pm AEDT, AAMI Park |
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These two fierce 2018 Grand Final rivals absolutely thrive when facing off against one another. That being the case so much so that their last three head-to-heads have each ended in 2-1 results, the latest of which was an away victory to the Victory. With the scores locked up headed into the 90+3-minute of extra time it was Francesco Margiotta, the ex-Juventus Forward, who won it for the Victory with one of his five strikes for the club. Whilst prior to that it was the Jets who overcame a one-goal deficit and a no-go VAR decision at AAMI Park to prevail over Melbourne courtesy of second-half efforts from Valentino Yuel (57th-minute) and Beka Mikeltadze (70th-minute) to collect all three-points. There will be no love lost between these two franchises.
The Victory have certainly had an underwhelming start to the season to say the least, having won just one of four matches so far. The latest of which was a stunningly sad 0-0 stalemate in Brisbane vs Brisbane last round. Despite having an extra man over the Roar for 35+ second-half minutes and having taken 29 shots, in addition to owning 66% possession of the ball, they were still unable to dismantle Warren Moon’s troops. Ditto for the Jets who had just four shots in their last clash versus Western Sydney in Western Sydney. However given their previous history and the need for points to go up on the board, this is a fine, fine clash to start us off for Round Five.
Betting tips: Look for the Victory to open the scoring at $1.60 (TexBet)
Also look for H2 to witness more goals in it vs H1 at $2.06 (BoomBet)
Saturday, November 5
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Melbourne City v Perth Glory5:00pm AEDT, AAMI Park |
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The visitors head to AAMI Park having stunningly triumphed in three of their last five clashes against the hosts, with the Glory having scored 2+ goals on all three of those winning occasions. And playing one of their few games at home earlier this year, Perth flexed their muscles in what was both a commanding and shock 2-0 victory on their part. Despite seeing 25-shots fired away by City versus the Glory’s defiant defence, they held on for the better. Meanwhile through just their five attempts they witnessed Callum Timmins score just five-minutes into the game, whilst he doubled his tally on the 67-minute mark as well. The 22-year-old producing two of his three goals for the season in that rich five-star showing. The game before that in Victoria saw the Glory peg back a 2-0 hole to lock down a 2-2 stalemate. Being played on an early Saturday evening, this is a brilliant match to either watch from the stands or view from home on the telly.
Much like Manchester City, there’s never really a good time to play Melbourne City. However with the Melbournian’s left looking like stunned mullets after their late capitulation vs Wellington last round, now certainly appears to be a good of a time as any to go face-to-face against Patrick Kisnorbo’s reigning Grand Finalists. History shows us that on three of the last four occasions City have drawn a match, they’ve gone on to be involved in a tight stalemate the one after too, which gives the Glory a hell of a fighting chance right here. Super youngster Giordano Colli is a prime example of that, as with his side down 2-0 against the ‘Reds’ last weekend, he produced a rocket from outside of the box to peg back the oppositions lead to just one goal. Another five-star performance from the former NPL Player of the Year will certainly do Perth’s chances no harm in this no doubt should be exciting encounter.
Betting tips: Look for a fighting City win at $1.36 (BlueBet)
Also look for City to open the scoring at $1.36 (TexBet)
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Western Sydney Wanderers v Central Coast Mariners7:45pm AEDT, CommBank Stadium |
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These two dominant performers love a goal bonanza whenever they verse each other. So much so that over their last three head-to-head contests, they’ve collectively averaged 3.33 strikes per match. That attack as it turns out is usually pretty entertaining too, with each side registering 13-shots the last time they met. Meanwhile in the match prior to that, the Mariners conjured up 13 and the Wanderers 15. Both Marko Rudan and Nick Montgomery aren’t afraid to let their teams go wild so to speak and that works brilliantly when you have the likes of Sulejman Krpic (two goals this season) & Milos Ninkovic (four shot assists for Western Sydney) facing off against Jason Cummings (one goal and two strike assists alone last match) & Samuel Silvera (two goals this campaign). Expect a brilliantly orchestrated match that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
If ever there was an A-League player to take on the plane to Qatar for the World Cup then it simply has to be the Man of the Hour, Jason ‘Cum Dog’ Cummings. His Footballing play is scintillating at the moment. It was on full display last Saturday as he tore last seasons championship victors Western United to shreds. Down 2-0 inside 28-minutes of play he put on a magical performance to the tune of one goal, two assists and 13 crucial passes as his Mariners eventually got up 4-2. He is a freak of nature, he really is and he’s doing everything possible to make sure he gets a seat on that plane. He has the potential to bust the Wanderers wide open this game given everything he’s capable of doing and there’s only so much their defensive players can do in order to slow him down. Oh and he also had two goals additionally disallowed against the ‘Green & Black’ too. WOAH! WOAH! WOAH!
Betting tips: Look for both teams to find some refuge in the back of the net at $1.61 (bet365)
Also look for the H1 goals to be over 0.5 at $1.33 (bet365)
Sunday, November 6
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Wellington Phoenix v Macarthur FC1:00pm AEDT, Sky Stadium |
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For Wellington last round it was nothing but pure elation via their exciting 2-2 draw against the ‘Sky Blue’ side of Melbourne. Meanwhile for Macarthur they were subjected to dwindling depression in their tight 3-2 defeat to Sydney in the ‘Derby’. A beautiful and small, yet deadly accurate pass from Ben Old at AAMI Park saw ‘Nix’ legend Kosta Barbarouses through on goals and the rest is history, as he blasted the ball past Tom Glover into the bottom-right corner to even the scores up 90-minutes in. Meanwhile for the ‘Bulls’ there was no rampage as Adrian Segecic sent home the hosts broken-hearted with a decent 84th-minute that put his Sydney FC in the drivers seat of their clash. And despite a fine strike from ex-Benfica B Forward Anthony Carter just three-minutes later, it wasn’t enough to salvage a draw. With the Phoenix in 9th on the ladder and that being the ‘Bulls’ first loss of the season, both teams would no doubt like to rebound strongly with positive performances in this encounter.
From their last 19 games at home, Wellington are undefeated in 16 of them. Meanwhile Macarthur are undefeated in their last six consecutive road clashes, thus setting up the perfect matchup right here! After registering six goals and two assists last season, David Ball has featured in just one game so far this season, as the Englishman has struggled injury wise. Meanwhile Carter of the ‘Bulls’, despite contesting four matches this season, has produced just the one strike to show for it, albeit a fine one at that. Both Attackers would love to have a far greater influence than that of what they’ve had for their respective sides this season. Ball is 32-years-of-age, while Carter is 28, so neither will want to take too much longer to shake off their shackles. Given where both teams are at this season, with the Phoenix in a bit of strife and Macarthur far more attacking then defending-based, this is a great opportunity for either one of or both Men to finally get their seasons underway with a bang.
Betting tips: Look for Daniel Arzani to score anytime at $3.50 (bet365)
Also look for over 1.5 goals to be produced throughout the match at $1.20 (bet365)
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Brisbane Roar v Sydney FC3:00pm AEDT, Moreton Daily Stadium |
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Many people have laughed at these two clubs in the past for trying to force a rivalry similar to that of Rugby League’s State of Origin, but the fact is these clubs don’t like each other and there’s good reasons for that + there’s always absolutely quality Football being contested too. You only have to see the last time they played, in Brisbane, as direct evidence of that. The Roar withstood a herculean offensive effort from the ‘Sky Blues’, in which Sydney attempted 16 shots in total, only for they (Brisbane) to prevail 3-1. And it was former Sydney Attacker Luke Ivanovic who scored the last strike of the game, putting the cherry on top of the cake for the hosts in the 67th-minute. Whilst their last game in Brisbane before that was a crazy affair which saw the Roar go scoreless despite taking 31 shots at goal. And despite Sydney winning 2-1 the game was only decided 90+5 minutes on via a clinical Harry Van Der Saag strike. Absolutely anything can happen in this encounter and I’m all here for it.
There’ll probably be a hell of a lot more attack than defence in this encounter, but I’m predicting a Sydney FC triumph here. Despite their obvious struggles so far this season, they obviously possess a lot of class, whereas Brisbane despite their best efforts have faltered in most departments thus far. Charlie Austin alongside the burning speed of Riku Danzaki give the hosts a bit of fire to fight with in this tasty encounter, but Robert Mak is the Man who should ultimately come out on top in this affair. The former Manchester City player has locked down three strikes and six shot assists this season, with the 31-year-old Slovakian having an impressive start to his life in the A-League. With or without ‘Alfie’ Adam Le Fondre due to injury concerns he should get the visitors home at Moreton Daily Stadium.
Betting tips: Don’t be afraid to pick a stern Sydney victory at $2.30 (bet365)
Also look for them to score last at $1.90 (BoomBet)
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Western United v Adelaide United5:00pm AEDT, AAMI Park |
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Interestingly enough, two of the last four matches between these sides have been nil-all draws. The earliest of which came two-years ago and played witness to not one but two red cards! First Victor Sanchez saw red in the 36th-minute, then 90+4 in it was Mohamed Toure. There was also a combined 10 yellow cards dished out in this spicy encounter + 32 free kicks awarded. Then in the pesky, goaless stalemate prior, 30 fouls were conceded and nine yellow cards were handed out. As beautifully as these two teams can swish and slash with the ball at their feet, this game should and very well could be ugly. With the hosts in 12th on the ladder and the visitors just inside the Top Six by the skin of their teeth, expect this to be a matchup where desperation is the key and doing anything it shall be (insert winky face emoji here).
Through eight collective matches this season these two sides have just a singular win between them. And for who both clubs are and the supposed quality they have on paper, that’s just simply embarrassing! They should each be doing a hell of a lot better then that of what they currently are. So once again that’s where that dog fight mentality might tend to sneak in a bit. When your desperate for points and when your in a need of a win your play gets scrappy and you really go all out fighting. Jamie Young won’t take a step back in goals and neither will the merciless Joe Gauci. This clash will be extremely interesting! That’s for sure!
Betting tip: Look for both teams to score at $1.61 (bet365)
Also back over 1.5 goals to be scored throughout the game at $1.22 (bet365)
Best Bets of the Round – Western Sydney Wanderers vs Central Coast Mariners
Betting tips: Look for both teams to find some refuge in the back of the net at $1.61 (bet365)
Also look for the H1 goals to be over 0.5 at $1.33 (bet365)