Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Melbourne Victory’s 2022-23 campaign stands on the edge of a knife, with the next seven days likely to determine its fate. Yep, it’s this line again. But if the A-League Men are going to keep giving Victory second chances, it’s going to be one that keeps reappearing until they either escape the foot of the table or an opposition finally figures out a way to double-tap their finals hopes.
Bottom-placed but just six points outside the playoff places and possessing the best goal difference of any team outside the top six, Victory will fly to Wellington on Friday morning ahead of a Saturday afternoon clash with the Phoenix, the first of three games of a week.
They will return home to re-commence their suspended Melbourne City on Wednesday, play resuming with Victory down 1-0 in the 20th minute after the game was previously forced to stop when its fans stormed the field and injured several people, including City goalkeeper Tom Glover and referee Alex King. A home fixture against fellow strugglers Perth Glory will then follow on Sunday, a game that could either see the hosts looking to jump into the top six or battling to avoid a second wooden spoon in three seasons.
Image Credit: Melbourne Victory
That a scenario exists in which Victory could head into their away fixture against Western Sydney on April 15 battling for seeding in the finals feels like it’s stretching the bounds of credibility and good taste. This is a team that has lost eleven games against six wins so far and at times has resembled an object so blunt that only a caveman on the search for a new club would appreciate it. But coming off the back of a deserved 2-0 win over the Central Coast Mariners, it’s not a completely unfeasible one, either.
“We finished before the break with a fantastic performance and result against Central Coast,” said coach Tony Popovic. “So we know we’re good enough to compete with the best teams. For many reasons, we haven’t had that consistency and we’ve lost too many games. We can’t change what’s happened, we can only change what’s in front of us.
“I thought the players showed some great resolve against Central Coast, some very good quality to win the match. Now, it’s an exciting period. It’s three games in seven days. But we’ve got to peel it back and focus on Wellington, who are very strong at home, and are having a very good season.
“It’s always a good trip. The pitch is always great. Challenging conditions with the weather. But that’s what makes that trip special. Against a very good opponent.”
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Coming out of the international break which didn’t see the side lose any players to call-ups, Popovic said that only Jason Geria was under a cloud heading into the weekend, with the defender to be monitored over Thursday and Friday before a decision was made on his availability. Holding midfielder Rai Marchan has built up his fitness after resuming full training.
Striker Fernando Romero, however, won’t be making the trip to Aeoteroa after receiving a red card for a studs-up challenge against the Mariners. The Paraguayan had impressed before his dismissal in what was his first start for Victory, netting his maiden goal for the club and gelling well with Bruno Fornaroli as part of a two-man strike force. His absence will now force an adjustment from Popovic, albeit he wouldn’t give away if it would simply be a straight swap in personnel or another change in shape.
“We’ve tried a couple of things,” said the coach. “Different personnel give different attributes. We’ve lost our natural number ten in Jake Brimmer for the year. We’re looking at how we can get the best out of the individuals and what can help the team.
“We’re looking at a few options today and tomorrow and I think we can be comfortable with a couple of situations.”
The Phoenix will enter Saturday’s contest fifth on the ALM table, three points back of third and fourth-placed Western Sydney and Central Coast and possessing a four-point buffer on sixth-placed Sydney FC.
The Kiwis suffered one of the more remarkable losses one could hope to see in their last hitout: losing 5-1 away to Adelaide United despite outshooting them 19 to 14 and winning the expected goals battle 3.72 to 2.76.
“I watched their game against Adelaide and though you look at the scoreline and think it was a one-sided game,” Popovic said. “But when you watch the game in-depth, Wellington played well. As in all football matches, moments make the difference. But they’re a good team, they’re very dangerous going forward.”
Adding further intrigue to Saturday, a report over the break linked off-contract Phoenix boss Ufuk Talay with a move to Melbourne during the offseason, the latest in a long-standing tradition of reports mooting a potential move to either Victory or Sydney FC for the in-demand 47-year-old.
Talay told New Zealand media he didn’t know what he was doing beyond the end of the ALM season earlier this month, and club officials indicated that they were “doing due diligence” as to be ready in case the winningest coach in the club’s history moved towards the ext.
“That’s not a conversation that we’ve had or that I’m concerned about,” Popovic, who has another year to run on his contract at Victory, said when asked if he’d been given any indication he was to be moved on. “I’m just concerned about the game. Speculation will always exist in football. Regardless of if it’s about coaches or about players.
“We can only deal with what we know and what we can control and that’s going into this match.”
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Header Image Credit: Melbourne Victory
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