It’s Derby week as Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City go head-to-head for bragging rights once more at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
Victory are the challengers in their fight to secure finals football as reigning Isuzu UTE A-League champions and leaders Melbourne City take the competition by storm.
City have blown away their A-League Men rivals with a whopping 52 goals in 23 matches – the league’s top scorer Jamie Maclaren has contributed 14, while third-placed Victory have the stingiest defence with just 20 conceded through their 19 games.
Both boast an array of talent, but who makes it into Opta’s combined XI for the 38th instalment of the Melbourne Derby, a selection driven by this season’s data?
Opta uses an algorithm that looks at a player’s contribution in statistics and calculates a score out of 100.
Here’s the Melbourne Derby XI in a 3-4-3 formation, based on Opta’s algorithm:
GK: Ivan Kelava (Melbourne Victory) – 68
The big Croatian gets the nod ahead of City counterpart Thomas Glover. In his first season with Victory, Kelava has made 18 ALM appearances and won the FFA Cup, but there have been some calls for closer scrutiny on his grip on the No.1 spot.
DF: Scott Jamieson (Melbourne City) – 76
An experienced head in City’s defence, the 33-year-old Jamieson has also provided plenty going forward with four assists this season.
DF: Curtis Good (Melbourne City) – 74
The former Newcastle United centre-back and two-time Socceroo is at the heart of this defence amid his strong run of form. Stopping goals at one end, Good has also bagged three of his own while supplying one assist.
DF: Jason Geria (Melbourne Victory) – 69
There’s been calls for a Socceroos call-up ahead of the World Cup play-offs, such has been Geria’s form back at AAMI Park. The 28-year-old has been reliable in defence for Tony Popovic’s side.
WB: Mathew Leckie (Melbourne City) – 76
After a slow start, Leckie is well and truly on fire. The Socceroo began the season without a goal in his first seven matches back in the ALM. He now has nine goals in his last 10 for City.
WB: Jason Davidson (Melbourne Victory) – 68
Reunited with Popovic, Davidson has been a livewire for Victory. The left-footed speedster has a cracking goal to his name, plus an assist but his energy is priceless. You simply couldn’t omit one of him, or Jamieson from the side – so we’ve found room for both!
MF: Connor Metcalfe (Melbourne City) – 72
Metcalfe is continuing to soar to new heights. In the latest Socceroos squad that came up against Japan and Saudi Arabia, the St Pauli-bound midfielder looks to set to go out with a bang this term. Two goals and five assists highlights his all-round quality.
MF: Aiden O’Neill (Melbourne City) – 68
Connor’s partner in crime to anchor City’s midfield, O’Neill has flourished under Patrick Kisnorbo in 2021-22. A lot of his work goes unnoticed but the ex-Burnley man is invaluable in this City line-up.
FW – Marco Tilio (Melbourne City) – 75
Tilio is an exciting talent impressing for City and in every chance given in Graham Arnold’s Socceroos. In 19 City appearances – with only nine of those starts – the attacker has four goals and five assists to his name.
FW – Nick D’Agostino (Melbourne Victory) – 73
It’s been a breakout season for D’Agostino – his decision to reunite with former Perth Glory boss Popovic proving a wise decision. He’s outshone Italian import Francesco Margiotta with seven goals and Socceroos selection, even keeping out Golden Boot leader Maclaren in this XI, based on Opta’s data.
FW – Florin Berenguer (Melbourne City) – 80
The flying Frenchman is one of the favourites to win the Johnny Warren Medal. In his fourth season with City, Berenguer has featured in all 23 of his team’s league matches, racking up five goals and five assists.
