Hard to know exactly how both sides will approach this match with neither or them able to progress to the next phase.
Date: Wednesday 16 May, 2012
Kick-off: 7.30pm AEST
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
Head-to-head
Played: 1 Wins: Brisbane 0, Beijing 0, Drawn 1
Previous encounter
Beijing 1, Brisbane 1, March 20, 2012
History: The two sides have met just once before, on Matchday two this season, with the match ending in a 1-1 draw. Beijing took an early lead through Piao Cheng before Roar midfielder Mitch Nichols scored the club’s first-ever goal in Asia with an equaliser 12 minutes later. Brisbane battered the Beijing goal for large periods, especially in the first half, but couldn’t find a winner.
Form:
Past five matches:
Brisbane: DWLWL
Brisbane were officially knocked out of their debut ACL campaign on their last outing in an entertaining 4-2 defeat to FC Tokyo. The Roar, who will be playing just their second game in three-and-a-half weeks, are still searching for their first win in the competition.
Beijing: DWLDW
Beijing are also playing for nothing but pride after a forgettable AFC Champions League campaign, with two draws from their five games so far. Their domestic form has been much better and they moved into fourth place with a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Guizhou Renhe over the weekend.
Match Committee:
Both sides head into this one with no major injury worries although with little at stake it wouldn’t be a surprise if Roar boss Rado Vidosic gave a couple of his youngsters a run out while Beijing may opt to rest one or two of their key men with one eye on their league campaign.
Danger men:
Mitch Nichols – Nichols is coming off another strong Hyundai A-League season and will be hoping to make a mark on the Asian front. The attack-minded midfielder is a key link man between the defence and striker Besart Berisha and after starting off the bench in the Roar’s last ACL match will be eager to show he deserves a regular starting berth under the new manager.
Andrija Kaluderovic – The Serbian striker has yet to fully acclimatise to the Chinese league after joining from FK Rad in the off-season but is a deadly finisher on his day. Has shown glimpses of his talent in the domestic league in recent weeks and may just be about to explode which spells bad news for the Roar.
Former Brisbane hero Reinaldo will also be looking for a big game in his first match at Suncorp since leaving to join Guoan. The Brazilian has scored four goals in eight games in the Chinese Super League.
At the end of the day…
Hard to know exactly how both sides will approach this match with neither or them able to progress to the next phase. The Roar’s squad may already be thinking about their end-of-season trip while Beijing will no doubt be hoping they don’t jeopardise the strong start they have made to their domestic campaign.
But there is still something to play for in this one with the loser to finish at the bottom of the group. Despite failing to win in their opening five games, a last-placed finish would be hard on the Roar who have played some exquisite football during the group stage which has contributed to some entertaining games.
New boss Vidosic won’t want to have to wait until next season to notch his first win and with the lure to give their fans something to cheer about heading into the off-season break, the Roar should get over the line in a tight one.
