Roderick Miranda has been an ever-present since joining Melbourne Victory and he stands on the cusp of silverware. aleagues.com.au looks at the numbers behind the Portuguese captain.
If there has been a constant at Melbourne Victory across the last four years, it is Roderick Miranda.
While coaches Tony Popovic and Patrick Kisnorbo have come and gone, the former Benfica and Wolves defender arrived in 2021-22 and he has been an ever-present in the navy blue.
Only Sydney FC’s Rhyan Grant (99) has managed more Isuzu UTE A-League appearances in that timeframe across the competition.
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Miranda now has another opportunity to get his hands on silverware as a blockbuster sold-out Melbourne Derby awaits on Saturday night, after last season’s heartbreaking Grand Final defeat in Gosford.
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The veteran Portuguese captain shapes as a key component of the 2024-25 showpiece at AAMI Park, with his experience to be key to Victory’s chances particularly with Brendan Hamill sidelined.
Miranda’s numbers show a player instrumental to Victory’s quest of a fifth Championship and first since 2017-19. They also show a defender with a wide range of attributes.
This season, he is fourth for duels won (136) among defenders and in the top 10 for aerial duels won (58), clearances (160), possession won in defensive third (56) and duel success (69.4).
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But it is on the ball where Miranda shines and his skills come to the fore.
In 2024-25, he leads the way among defenders for passes into the final third (293), while he is second for successful passes in the opposition half (543) and forward passes (680). Not to mention he ranks third and fourth respectively for passes ending in final third (336) and successful passes ending in final third (218).
This paints a picture of a defender instrumental in creating Victory’s attacks from the back – a player comfortable on the ball and able to transition from defence into attack.
Miranda missed the Semi-Final first leg due to a calf problem but despite limited training, he returned for the return clash in Auckland and helped the four-time champions defy the odds to upstage the reigning premiers last week.
A two-time Taca da Liga winner with Portugal to go with an EFL Championship trophy at Wolves, Miranda has never won a top-flight league title but he has a great chance to end that wait on Saturday night.
It would cap an incredible body of work for a shrewd foreign signing who has impressed over the past four years.
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Since 2021-22 among defenders, Miranda tops the list for forward passes (2232) and passes into the final third (858). He is also second for passes successful (4788) and carry directness (604), while third for possession won in middle third (201) and fourth for clearances (411), successful passes in own half (3106) and successful passes in opposition half (1682).
It is worth noting, Miranda is in the top 10 for total carries (1207), total carry distance (11915.8), total carry progress (6582.7), aerial duels (284), passes ending in final third (994), duels won (671), possession won defensive third (253) and possession won (459).
This weekend could see Miranda etch his name in the Victory history books.
