It’s midweek Hyundai A-League action on Tuesday night as Western Sydney Wanderers host Wellington Phoenix in a vital match for both clubs.
After their heart-breaking 2-1 loss to Melbourne Victory on Saturday night, the Wanderers will be desperate to bounce back to keep in touch with the top six in the 7.50pm (AEDT) kick off.
Markus Babbel’s men are currently seven points behind the sixth-placed Phoenix, meaning a defeat in this one will make it increasingly hard to make the Finals Series.
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The Wanderers can at least draw on the fact one of their two wins for the 2018/19 campaign came against the Phoenix, a dominant 3-0 triumph back in November.
But this is a very different Wellington team to the one that was swept aside on that day.
Mark Rudan’s men are full of confidence on the back of a six-game unbeaten run, including their spirited 0-0 draw in Adelaide on Saturday, despite having midfielder Mandi sent off.
The Spaniard will miss this one through suspension, meaning Rudan has a hole to fill in the middle of the park.
The clash will see Wanderers new recruit Kwame Yeboah make his debut, while the likes of Mitch Nichols and Michal Kopczynski will be in contention to take Mandi’s spot alongside Alex Rufer in midfield.
Key Opta stats
- Western Sydney Wanderers are undefeated in their last eight games against Wellington Phoenix (W6, D2), winning their last three encounters.
- The Phoenix are undefeated in their last six games (W3, D3) and will be searching for a club record-equalling seventh straight game without loss.
- The Wanderers have hit the woodwork eight times this campaign, the joint-most of any team and accounting for nearly five percent of their total shots (inc. blocks) this season.
Ins and outs
Western Sydney Wanderers FC squad: 5.Brendan HAMILL (c), 7.Nick FITZGERALD, 8.Jordan O’DOHERTY, 9.Oriol RIERA, 10.Alex BAUMJOHANN, 11.Bruce KAMAU, 13.Tass MOURDOUKOUTAS, 14.Mathieu CORDIER, 17.Keanu BACCUS, 20.Vedran JANJETOVIC (gk), 21.Tarek ELRICH, 24.Raul LLORENTE, 27.Kwame YEBOAH, 28.Roly BONEVACIA, 33.Tate RUSSELL, 34.Patrick ZIEGLER, 40.Nicholas SUMAN (gk), 49.Abraham MAJOK **two to be omitted**
Ins: 27.Kwame YEBOAH (new signing), 24.Raul LLORENTE (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: 4.Josh RISDON (international duty)
Wellington Phoenix Squad: 1.Filip KURTO, 5.Ryan LOWRY, 6.Dylan FOX, 8.Mitch NICHOLS, 9.Nathan BURNS, 11.David WILLIAMS, 13.Liberato CACACE, 14.Alex RUFER, 15.Michal KOPZCYNSKI, 16.Louis FENTON, 17.Callan ELLIOT, 18.Sarpreet SINGH, 19.Tom DOYLE, 20.Oliver SAIL (gk), 21.Roy KRISHNA, 22.Andrew DURANTE (c), 23.Max BURGESS, 27.Steven TAYLOR **two to be omitted**
Ins: 6.Dylan FOX (promoted), 8.Mitch Nichols (promoted), 17.Callan ELLIOT (promoted)
Outs: 4.Mandi SOSA (suspended – 3 weeks)
Unavailable: Nil
How to watch
Tune in to Fox Sports 505 from 7.30pm AEDT or stream live on the MyFootball Live App. Live Fast and Data Free for Telstra mobile customers.
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Tickets
Secure your seat HERE to watch the Wanderers host the in-form Phoenix.
Tipping