Brisbane Roar coach John Aloisi was ecstatic with his side’s all-round display after their entertaining 0-0 draw with unbeaten league leaders Sydney FC at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night.
In front of 13,095 fans on humid night in the Queensland capital, Roar in third spot kept up the pressure on Melbourne Victory in second after picking up a point.
Theo, Oar star but Sydney FC remain unbeaten
With four points between them and the Big V, it keeps Aloisi’s men within reach of the top two with nine games left for them.
“We’re disappointed we didn’t get the three points,” Alosi told SBS 2 TV.
“We created a number of chances – clear chances. We got in behind them quite a bit and had a few good one-on-ones.
“The performance was great, but disappointed not to get three points.
“The luck wasn’t really with us in front of goal because their keeper [Vukovic] has been on fire all season then the crossbar and blocked tackles.
“So you have to say, credit to Sydney.”
It ends a successful week for Brisbane, who defeated Wanderers last weekend in the A-League and Global FC in an ACL qualifier midweek.
Brisbane Roar next face Shanghai Shenhua on Wednesday night in the final ACL qualifier in Shanghai, with the winner qualifying for the group stage.
This is followed by fellow top six side Melbourne City on Saturday at AAMI Park in Melbourne.
It means another tricky week of selections for Aloisi who must juggle his squad and negotiate a heavy travel schedule in two competitions.
“I have to discuss with the players who’ll travel and who’ll stay. I also have to prepare for Melbourne City because we only arrive the night before the game,” Aloisi said.
“We have to make sure we get both games right. The ones that will travel will prepare for Shanghai and the ones that stay will prepare for Melbourne City.
“There are one or two [players] I need to have a good look at to see how they pulled up tonight and tomorrow.
“So we might have to change a couple of tickets,” he added with a smile.