Big Blue: Sydney FC v Melbourne Victory, by the numbers

With anticipation rising ahead of the weekend’s third clash of the season between Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory, www.a-league.com.au has teamed up with Opta to bring you the Big Blue stats that matter. 

Read on to see who has faced their foes the most times, the Big Blue’s highest goalscorers, shot-stoppers and more. 

MATCH PREVIEW: Sydney FC v Melbourne Victory 
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READ: Georg Niedermeier targets big finish after nightmare run

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Head to Head – the all-time record in the Hyundai A-League

Victory narrowly tip the balance in Big Blue Derby wins so far, with 16 victories in the 48 meetings between the two clubs – including two hard-earned 2-1 triumphs this season – compared with Sydney FC’s 15. 

The weekend’s visitors have already come out on top once in the Harbour City this campaign, at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in Round 5 in November 2018, but still trail the hosts six to eight in wins in Sydney. 

  Played SYD Wins Draws MVC Wins SYD Goals MVC Goals
Overall 48 15 17 16 66 70
at Sydney 23 8 9 6 34 33

 

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Leigh Broxham

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Players to have featured most often in a Hyundai A-League Big Blue

No player has more experience of the heat of a Big Blue battle than Melbourne Victory midfielder Leigh Broxham

The 31-year-old, who is approaching 300 games for the club he has represented his entire career, has donned his boots against the Sky Blues on no fewer than 37 occasions. 

His nearest challenger is his former Victory teammate Archie Thompson, who notched up 30 Big Blue clashes before moving on at the end of the 2015/16. 

Of the players likely to line up against Broxham on Saturday, only Sydney FC’s Alex Brosque features on the leaderboard, with 29 games to his credit. 

Player Games
Broxham, Leigh 37
Thompson, Archie 30
Ryall, Sebastian 29
Brosque, Alex 29
Leijer, Adrian 24
McFlynn, Terry 23
Muscat, Kevin 19
Milligan, Mark 19
Vargas, Rodrigo 18
Hernández, Carlos 16
Bolton, Clint 16

 

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The top scorers 

It is no great surprise to see the prolific Archie Thompson topping this collection of regular net-busters. The former Caltex Socceroo made something of a habit of scoring against Victory’s biggest rivals, putting his name in the ledger 14 times in his 30 games against them over 11 years. 

Sydney FC legend Alessandro Del Piero may not feature on this list, but the Italian superstar did register 34 shots in his seven Big Blue matches – an average of almost five per game – the highest rate since 2012/13, when detailed records began being kept. 

Next most shot-happy was the Hyundai A-League’s all-time leading goalscorer, Besart Berisha, who fired off 33 in 15 appearances.

Current Victory star Kosta Barbarouses has aimed at goal 32 times in his 14 Big Blues, scoring five times along the way and creating an impressive 24 chances for others.

Only former Victory man Gui Finkler can top Barbarouses’ chance-creation stats, with the Brazilian carving out 27 opportunities across 11 games. 

Of those involved at the weekend, the closest challenger is Sydney FC’s Milos Ninkovic, with 20 chances made in 13 appearances. 

Player Games Goals
Thompson, Archie 30 14
Allsopp, Daniel 15 6
Berisha, Besart 15 5
Bridge, Mark 12 5
Troisi, James 13 5
Barbarouses, Kosta 14 5
Carney, David 12 5
Brosque, Alex 29 4
Smeltz, Shane 7 4
Bobô 8 4

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The shooting stars (since 2012/13)… 

Player Games Total Shots (On Target)
Del Piero, Alessandro 7 34 (12)
Berisha, Besart 15 33 (15)
Barbarouses, Kosta 14 32 (14)

… and the top stoppers (since 2012/13)

Victory’s first-choice goalkeeper Lawrence Thomas will be keen to extend his record as the safest pair of hands since detailed records began being kept in 2012/13. 

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Only Perth Glory and Sydney FC have conceded fewer goals than Melbourne Victory’s 28 in the Hyundai A-League this season, while Thomas has pulled off 45 stops in his 12 matches between Victory and the Sky Blues. 

Defensively, Sydney FC’s Caltex Socceroos defender Rhyan Grant stands out, with 42 interceptions in 12 meetings, while the omni-present Broxham has made 41 in 22 appearances since 2012/13. 

Player Games Saves
Thomas, Lawrence 12 45
Janjetovic, Vedran 12 42
Coe, Nathan 9 33
Vukovic, Danny 7 20
Redmayne, Andrew 6 12
Necevski, Ivan 2 8

 

Rhyan Grant

 

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