Melbourne Heart coach John van ‘t Schip has admitted he is wary of Gold Coast United’s strength and unpredictability on the ball ahead of their clash at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
After some early hiccups the Heart are now playing the best football of their debut season, following up a spirited 2-1 derby win over Melbourne Victory with a remarkable 2-2 draw at Wellington Phoenix last Sunday.
The Hyundai A-League’s newest arrivals will make it four in a row at home if they can topple United on Saturday, though the task is a difficult one.
United are undefeated in their past six games with three victories and three draws, and join Adelaide United as the only teams yet to lose away from home this season.
Their terrific away record means Gold Coast are unlikely to be unfazed by a trip to Melbourne, and the visitors will be carrying a full-strength squad after the return of striker Joel Porter.
Faced with the challenge of arresting United’s quiet progress up the Hyundai A-League table, van ‘t Schip admits: “It’s not going to be easy.”
“They’re a very good team in keeping possession. They like to play the ball around, and they have the players to do that,” the Melbourne Heart coach said on Friday.
“They’re strong, they’re very unpredictable, and they have a lot of freedom of movement. Jason (Culina) is moving all over the park. (Zenon) Caravella, Robson (Alves da Silva) are coming onto balls, getting balls.”
“And of course they’re strong in set pieces. That’s what they showed last year, that they have a very solid team.”
The Heart have struggled in defence at times this season, and captain Simon Colosimo says his back four will need to be on their toes to prevent midfield star Culina and new striker Bruce Djite from putting together a lead.
“They’ve got ability, especially the midfield boys, and they’ve got genuine match-winners,” Colosimo said.
“Bruce has started to find his feet, and Jason knows how to find that final pass in the front third, so we’ve really got to work hard at nullifying that.”
