Brisbane Roar host Adelaide United in the Hyundai A-League on Sunday when the clubs’ respective AFC Champions League fortunes could be reversed.
Brisbane Roar host Adelaide United in the Hyundai A-League on Sunday when the clubs’ respective AFC Champions League fortunes could be reversed.
Reigning title holders Brisbane went down 2-0 at home to the J-League’s Tokyo FC in their first match of the 2012 Champions League group stage.
The Roar were far from outclassed at Suncorp Stadium, but goals from Tatsuya Yazawa and Aria Hasegawa sealed what was ultimately a comfortable victory for the visitors.
Making a nonsense of their poor domestic form, Champions League specialists Adelaide recorded an unlikely 2-1 win away to Uzbek heavyweights Bunyodkor.
Nigel Boogaard and Anthony Golec scored in the first and second half respectively at Stadion Majmuasi in Tashkent, with Kamoliddin Murzoev’s injury-time goal for the hosts merely a consolation.
Nevertheless, the two teams’ respective mid-week form is unlikely to be a guide for Sunday’s encounter.
Brisbane have won four of their last five matches in the league, and will be keen to get back to winning ways after being held 1-1 at home to Melbourne Heart last time out.
The Roar are second on the table, three points back from Central Coast Mariners.
With the leaders facing a challenging fixture away to Perth Glory this weekend, the visit of Adelaide could represent an opportunity for Brisbane to close the gap.
For their part, John Kosmina’s Adelaide are out of finals contention, and will be trying to end their season on a high in a bid to launch a successful Champions League campaign.
United are without a win from their last three matches in the league, and went down 2-0 at home Perth in their most recent outing.
Adelaide front man Sergio Van Dijk is one goal short of his 50th A-League strike, and it could arrive against former team Brisbane.
Van Dijk netted 25 times for the Roar between 2008 and 2010.
Expect Albanian striker Besart Berisha – the Hyundai A-League’s top scorer this season with 17 goals – to pose the chief threat for Brisbane.
The Roar will also hope to regain the services of young forward Mitch Nichols, who sat out the FC Toyko defeat with a tight groin.
