If you are expecting Wellington Phoenix to change their ways after a costly turnover in defence led to last weekend’s New Zealand Derby defeat, then think again.
The Phoenix were level with newcomers Auckland FC at 0-0 in the inaugural New Zealand Derby but heading into stoppage-time, an errant pass from goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi gifted possession to Jake Brimmer, and led to the Black Knights taking an 89th-minute lead in the Isuzu UTE A-League blockbuster.
Brimmer went on to double his tally for the game to seal a 2-0 victory to Auckland. The result might’ve been different if Oluwayemi and the Phoenix defence were drilled by Italiano to clear their lines in the face of danger – but that’s not the Wellington way.
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Speaking ahead of Wellington’s trip to Gosford to take on defending champions Central Coast Mariners on Sunday, Hughes said the message from Italiano hasn’t wavered despite the late collapse against Auckland.
“I think (Italiano’s) words were, in the meeting: ‘F***ing doubling down on this’.
Isaac Hughes, Wellington Phoenix defender
“People didn’t have a problem with us doing it last year, we definitely created a lot of chances for us last year. I think we’ve even created big chances off it this year.
“It’s a strength of ours, and maybe with a newer group we need more work on it but I think it’s something that’s good for us.”
“Mistakes happen, everyone makes mistakes that lead to goals,” he added. “Some people could have a go at Josh but I’d equally have a go at people who missed big chances – but it’s part of football.
“People are going to make mistakes. You don’t score every shot, you don’t make every pass. If you want to play the way we want to play, stuff like this is going to happen.
“It’s tough but I think it’s something that, if you watch the game back, you can see we made some big chances off our goal kicks. Teams fully commit to press us and when teams are pressing that aggressively, all it takes is one pass to break the line and all of a sudden you might be in a four-on-three attacking situation.
“The end definitely justify the means.”
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Speaking post-game, Italiano backed his players to the hilt when quizzed on his insistence on having his side play out from the back.
“Last season goal kicks were 30 or 40% of our chances,” he said at the time. “Once you start baiting the full-backs and centre-backs to pull out, it becomes a transitional moment.
“I have to double down and show the benefit of doing that. We proved last year that it works quite well.”
Italiano’s side finished second in the regular season in 2023-24, behind the Mariners who they face in Gosford on Sunday for the first time since a 2-1 defeat to the eventual Premiers and Champions in April.
Off-season signing Paulo Retre is expected to make his long-awaited Phoenix debut after an injury-impacted start to life in New Zealand, while Italiano will look to continue getting minutes into the legs of Marco Rojas.
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The “Kiwi Messi” returned to the club that launched his career ahead of the 2024-25 campaign and, like Retre, also endured a truncated pre-season due to injury.
A fractured fibula kept Rojas out of the first two rounds of the season but, against Auckland, the winger came off the bench in the 86th minute for his first Isuzu UTE A-League minutes for the club in more than 5,000 days.
That fact was presented to him in the build-up to Sunday’s trip to the Central Coast.
“I’m feeling a lot older after hearing that!” Rojas said.
“I came through fine, I came through well. Really greatful to be back out on the park, really grateful to have come back nicely from the injury and really cool to do it in front of 26,000 people, that was really cool.”
But now the comeback appearance is in the books, attention turns to getting Rojas back to his best – and the New Zealand international concedes it will take some time before he can get to his top level.
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“I had a bit of an up-and-down pre-season with a few niggles,” he said. “And then (in) a couple of internal games, a couple of kicks – as it happens in football games – and trained a little bit more and just had a lot of pain, and figured out there was a fracture. And then spent four weeks coming back from that.
“It (was) nothing too special, it was on the fibula which is non-weight bearing or not as much weight bearing so it healed pretty quick.”
Rojas added: “I think as a footballer, for myself there’s always the two sides: there’s one that’s really grateful just to be playing and the other was (wishing) it was more minutes – especially in a game lie that. So hopefully soon.
“I’ve got a lot of work I still need to do to get minutes in. I think in pre-season the most I had was a half of football so for 90 minutes I have to be honest, I’m probably a little way off. But hopefully, for more minutes it won’t be too far away, and I’ll just build from there.”
