Adelaide United has maintained their perfect record in the pre-season with after a 2-0 win over local NPL side Adelaide Olympic at Marden Sports Complex on Wednesday night.
In a tight and hard-fought contest for much of the 90 minutes, goals to Apostolos Stamatelopoulos and Carlo Armiento were enough to hand Marco Kurz’s men the win.
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All eyes were on new Reds signing Mirko Boland who was handed his debut and already showed promise in the midfield alongside IsaÃas and Nathan Konstandopoulos.
The German recruit showed some deft touches and an ability to manoeuvre out of tight spaces, while also circulating the ball with crisp passes and getting forward at every opportunity.
The Reds started the match on the front foot with IsaÃas almost finding an opening when his free-kick flew inches over the bar.
The Hyundai A-League side continued to dictate terms and retain possession; camping in Olympic’s half but failing to muster any clear-cut chances.
Kurz made several alterations to his side after the interval, however it did not appear to affect the team’s rhythm.
Stamatelopoulos was left free at the back post from a deep cross and fired a blistering drive, only for it to ricochet off the crossbar.
.@ApostolosStama and @armiento11 with their second goals in two weeks. Thank you to @AdelaideOlympic for the run tonight. #AUFC pic.twitter.com/TGSlLT1PvZ
— Adelaide United (@AdelaideUnited) July 25, 2018
But the striker would not be denied a second time a minute later, as they took the lead just over the hour mark.
Konstandopoulos recycled a ball back into the area which Stamatelopoulos was equal to, and his header nestled into the far corner.
A number of United Youth boys were given minutes to impress and they did not disappoint with Pacifique Niyongabire and Armiento making an impact.
Niyongabire was lively and combined dynamism with skill in advanced areas and Armiento again found the ability to be in the right place at the right time to double Adelaide’s advantage.
The versatile forward had the final say with the last kick of the game as he clinically converted Niyongabire’s cross from the right.
It was a solid display from the Reds and the ideal preparation ahead of this Wednesday’s FFA Cup Round of 32 clash against Central Coast Mariners.
