Melbourne City have tuned up for their Westfield FFA Cup Final with a hard-earned 2-1 win over Wellington Phoenix at AAMI Park on Sunday.
Bruno Fornaroli secured the hosts’ second win in three matches with a coolly-taken 71st minute penalty, a result which sees City leapfrog Melbourne Victory into second.
Nick Fitzgerald earlier opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time when the winger’s heavily-deflected shot wrong-footed an in-form Glen Moss.
Roy Krishna equalised at the second attempt of Wellington’s own penalty on the hour, but Ernie Merrick’s side struggled to create enough genuine chances in slipping to their fifth defeat of the season.
See the highlights and stats in the Match Centre
GOALS
1-0 City: Nick Fitzgerald, 44’
Fitzgerald turned inside Adam Parkhouse and saw his left-footed effort take a heavy deflection to wrong-foot Phoenix ‘keeper Glen Moss.
1-1 Phoenix: Roy Krishna, 59’
Ivan Franjic was punished for tugging the shirt of Kosta Barbarouses and, after Dean Bouzanis parried Roy Krishna’s initial penalty attempt, the Fijian converted his own follow-up.
2-1 City: Bruno Fornaroli, 71’
After Marco Rossi was adjudged to have pulled down Bruno Fornaroli, the Uruguayan stepped up to the spot and clinically rolled his penalty into the bottom corner.
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