Wellington Phoenix and Perth Glory will meet in Round 5 of the 2013-14 A-League season at AMI Stadium on Saturday, November 9 at 3pm AEDT.
Wellington Phoenix and Perth Glory will meet in Round 5 of the 2013-14 A-League season at AMI Stadium on Saturday, November 9 at 3pm AEDT.
Head-to-head:
Played: 20. Wins: Phoenix 10, Glory 7, Drawn 3
Previous encounter:
Glory 1-2 Phoenix, March 17, 2013
Form:
Past five matches (including pre-season):
Phoenix: LLDDL
Glory: WLDWW
The Game:
The formlines of both these two times couldn’t be more stark in difference with the Glory having a grand old time of it at present while the Phoenix are still searching for the breakthrough win of the season. But fortunately for Wellington their bid to change that trend has been given a boost in Christchurch this week with Ernie Merrick’s side avoiding decimation by international duty. Thanks to a time change to the game’s kickoff, Ben Sigmund, Andrew Durante, Leo Bertos, Jeremy Brockie and Glen Moss will all be able to play for the Phoenix before jetting out to Mexico City with the New Zealand team that will face Mexico in the first leg of intercontinental World Cup playoff. The Glory will also benefit from the earlier start to the match as it ensured their star Kiwi striker Shane Smeltz is also available. The hosts have history on their side in this match-up too as Perth have not registered a win against Wellington since April 2012 with the Phoenix winning two of the last three matches between the two sides.
The big issue:
Phoenix – Midfield cohesion and slow starts seem to be the main things that are getting in the way of the Phoenix and victory this season. The latter problem was no more evident than last week when Wellington found themselves three goals behind after just half an hour.
Glory – While Perth have won their last two matches, they did both come at home and were both against weak opposition in the form of Newcastle and Sydney. Phoenix obviously haven’t been setting the world on fire just yet, but a road trip to New Zealand, especially for the Glory, is no easy feat so this will serve as the perfect chance for Alistair Edwards’ men to prove their last two wins were a reflection of where they are heading as a football team this season.
The game breaker:
Carlos Hernandez – The Costa Rican has been threatening to do something spectacular at various stages in the early parts of the new season. And it’s because of his capability of producing the brilliant at the drop of a hat that the Glory should look to devote a lot of time into ensuring the capable goalscorer is effectively nullified.
