Melbourne City will be without injured midfielder Anthony Caceres against Adelaide United but coach John van ‘t Schip believes his team “can do some damage” to the Hyundai A-League leaders.
Adelaide jumped to the top of the table last week as they extended they remained undefeated for the 14th consecutive league match.
But having knocked off the Reds 4-2 at Coopers Stadium earlier in the season, City will be confident on Friday night.
Caceres won’t travel with City’s squad after straining a quadriceps muscle at training this week.
Apart from the midfielder and long-term absentee Corey Gameiro (knee), City will have a full squad to choose from, however, and Van ‘t Schip is aiming for three points in South Australia.
“We’re heading into this game in a way that we can do some damage, so that’s how we’re going to approach it,” the Dutch coach said on Thursday.
“We certainly think we’re having a chance and that we can give them a hard time. But we also have to know their [Adelaide’s] strengths.
“So I think the boys are looking forward to this type of game.”
City will head to Adelaide on the back of their 3-0 triumph over Sydney FC last week.
It was the first time this year that the Bundoora-based club had kept a clean sheet – City have just two for the season – and Van ‘t Schip hopes his team can carry that defensive momentum into the closing stages of the campaign.
“It’s very important [for morale],” he said.
“The boys understand that if we get that part right then we can really play a big role in the last games of this league and heading into, hopefully, the finals.
“But if you don’t get that right, it’s giving that uncertainty to the team…
“We’re in a good direction now and we get a great test on Friday against Adelaide – a team that’s always playing good football, creating chances… so we have to be prepared.”
City have only lost on one of their past four trips to Adelaide.
