Adelaide won’t recall their previous clashes with Gamba with any fondness having gone down to the Japanese club in the final of the 2008 Asian Champions League.
Adelaide won’t recall their previous clashes with Gamba with any fondness having gone down to the Japanese club in the final of the 2008 Asian Champions League.
In the two-legged finals system back then, the Reds lost the opening match in Japan 3-0 before the rout was completed in Adelaide when they lost 2-0 at Hindmarsh Stadium thanks to two goals from Lucas Severino.
Date: Tuesday, March
Kick-off: 8pm AEDT, 7.30pm local
Venue: Hindmarsh Stadium
Head-to-head
Played 2: Wins: Adelaide 0, Gamba 2
Previous encounter
Adelaide 1, Gamba Osaka 2, November 12, 2008
Form:
Past five matches:
Adelaide: LLWDL
Gamba: WWLLL
Adelaide continues to struggle for results in the Hyundai A-League, going down to league leaders Central Coast on the weekend. The Reds have picked up just one point in their last four domestic matches but they did start their ACL campaign with a morale-boosting win on the road against Bunyodkor.
But if Adelaide’s form has been poor then Gamba’s has been utterly woeful. The Japanese giants have lost all three competitive matches this year, including a disappointing 2-1 loss to Cerezo Osaka over the weekend. Their ACL campaign started with a shock 3-0 loss at home to Pohang Steelers.
Match Committee:
Good news for both sides with pretty much all their stars on deck for this one. Reds goalkeeper Eugene Galekovic (ankle) came through the weekend’s Hyundai A-League game unscathed while Sergio van Dijk (back) is in line for a return to the starting side.
Danger men:
Bruce Djite – Adelaide coach John Kosmina has put a lot of faith in the Socceroos striker and it’s time for him to deliver. Djite has got the nod ahead of van Dijk in recent weeks and while his overall game has been strong, it’s goals that strikers are judged on. Djite will need to have his scoring boots on if the Reds are to make it two wins out of two.
Yasuhito Endo – The supremely talented midfielder is the one that makes Gamba tick and he is still regarded one of the classiest players in Asian football. All of Gamba’s build-up play goes through Endo and the Reds will need to shutdown his influence on the game if they are to blunt their attack, where striker Takahiro Futagawa will be waiting to slot away any chances created.
At the end of the day…
This looms as a huge opportunity for Adelaide. After winning their opening game on the road – with Gamba losing – the Reds could take a huge step towards the knockout stage, even so early in the tournament, by beating Gamba in this one.
The Adelaide players that remain from the 2008 final won’t have forgotten what Gamba did to them and will be eager for some redemption. The Reds’ domestic form will hardly fill their fans with any great confidence but it was a similar story four years ago and they made it all the way to the decider. P
ressure is building on Gamba given their atrocious start to the season, with new coach Jose Carlos Serrao sure to be feeling the heat. While the Japanese side have failed to deliver so far in 2012, they have never lost to Australian opposition and will have fond memories from their last trip to the City of Churches.
Despite their current rut, Adelaide have struggled with Japanese opposition in the past which means a draw could be the likely result.
