Perth Glory launched an inspired second-half comeback to fight from two goals down and defeat Macarthur FC 3-2 in a pulsating win at HBF Park on Saturday night.
The hosts looked beaten at the break after first-half goals to Matt Millar and Valère Germain, but Salim Khelifi’s deflected finish early in the second stanza inspired the comeback fight.
Luke Ivanovic scored his first league goal for Glory to bring the hosts level, providing the launchpad for David Williams to strike a stoppage-time dagger and send the home crowd wild.
Giordano Colli was the star of the show for Perth, striking the post in the first half, assisting Khelifi’s 48th-minute strike and proving a constant threat in the 3-2 win, and summed up the emotion of his side’s breathtaking fightback to Paramount+ post-game.
“It’s an absolutely unbelievable result for the players,” Colli said.
“We’ve been grinding out some tough draws and losses the past few weeks, so to get a win like this from 2-0 down is unbelievable from the boys.”
Glory head coach Alen Stajcic, meanwhile, spoke for the Glory staff, players and fans as he expressed his relief after the much-needed win with a beaming smile.
“We always make hard work of it,” Stajcic said. “I think I need a bit of a lie down at the moment!”
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Raphael Borges Rodrigues came close to opening the scoring for Macarthur, firing a powerful strike on target and calling Cameron Cook into a save in the 14th minute.
Perth were on the attack soon after, with Stefan Colakovski controlling Ivanovic’s searching through ball with one touch, and firing off his laces to test Filip Kurto in goal for the Bulls.
Giordano Colli then went whiskers away from firing Glory into a first-half lead, combining with John Koutroumbis and rattling the post.
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Glory were punished for the early misses when Raphael sent Matt Millar through on goal to squeeze home the opener from a tight angle.
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Colli was a bright contributor for the hosts in the first half and put Kurto to the test after another give-and-go; Kurto’s spillage led to a follow-up attempt from Adam Taggart who couldn’t put his shot on target.
Late in the first half the Bulls made it two, and Millar was once again in the thick of the action.
Glory defender Jacob Muir was caught in possession by Germain and the following build-up led to the Frenchman’s close-range finish, as Macarthur filtered the ball from left to right with Millar firing a cross to the back post for Germain to slot home.
The referee’s whistle called an end to the first half, and a deathly quiet fell around HBF Park as a deflated Glory crowd processed the 2-0 scoreline at the break.
But Glory’s responded by bursting out of the blocks early in the second stanza, and soon enough the crowd was on its feet celebrating a deficit-halving goal.
Colli was once again at the heart of the best of Perth’s play, completing a one-two with Ivanovic on the edge of the area and sliding the ball to Khelifi who found the bottom corner with help from a Millar deflection.
The Bulls were then hit by a double injury blow; De Silva and Clayton Lewis were withdrawn in a double change with the former pulling up after over-reaching in an attempt to control a Cook clearance, and the latter limping off in the break of play.
Glory’s pursuit of an equaliser continued after the delay, and if not for a superb Kurto save, Ivanovic would have found it for the home side with a strong header.
But there was nothing Kurto could do about what came next: a Glory corner swung toward the front post was nodded on by Jacob Muir and Ivanovic pounced, turning the ball home to score his first A-Leagues goal since May, 2022 and his first in Glory colours since a move from Brisbane Roar.
The clock ticked into second-half stoppage time when Williams produced a dramatic winner.
A flick-on from Taggart sent Williams steaming in on goal, but he still had plenty to do with the strike; Williams delivered in style, blasting a low, driven shot into the bottom-left corner to ignite the crowd at HBF Park.
The star
Giordano Colli led the Perth Glory charge on Saturday night, assisting the home side’s opener after a bright first half in which the 23-year-old came close to scoring on multiple opportunities.
Colli was one of few Glory players who stood up to be counted in a first half otherwise dominated by Macarthur FC, and his continued efforts to claw his side back into the contest set the tone for what was to come.
Post-game, Colli labelled the comeback 3-2 win as “absolutely unbelievable” and it was hard to argue with the busy Glory creator who kept his foot of the accelerator all the way through a standout display.
What it means
Macarthur’s brilliant early season form has fallen away of late, with two defeats on the bounce preventing Mile Sterjovski’s side from keeping pace with league leaders Wellington Phoenix.
The Bulls went unbeaten through the first seven rounds of the season – but now they’re enduring a challenging period, with a Round 10 clash on the road against Western Sydney Wanderers set to test their mettle.
Perth, meanwhile, have gone two games unbeaten after three consecutive losses. Saturday’s win over Macarthur was their second three-point display of the season – but up next comes the unenviable task of taking on the red-hot Central Coast Mariners away from home on New Year’s Eve.
What they said
Hear from Perth Glory’s Alen Stajcic and Macarthur boss Mile Sterjovski as the two head coaches dissect all the big talking points from a five-goal thriller in Perth:
