Just one month ago they were the most feared side in the Hyundai A-League – now Brisbane Roar boss Ange Postecoglou admits his men have lost their attacking mojo.
Just one month ago they were the most feared side in the Hyundai A-League – now Brisbane Roar boss Ange Postecoglou admits his men have lost their attacking mojo.
Monday night’s 1-0 derby loss to Gold Coast United was the Roar’s fifth consecutive defeat, a remarkable downturn in form given just four weeks ago they were the toast of Australian sport.
Their record 36-match unbeaten run had framed them as a near-invincible side, ready to blow apart any ambitious challenges.
But now, the reality is much different – without two of their best players, Henrique and Thomas Broich, they are very vulnerable.
And not just that, they’ve also looked blunt in attack – incredible, given it seems like it was only yesterday that they were cutting swathes through the Adelaide defence in their massive 7-1 win earlier in the season.
Against Gold Coast they were ineffective, creating few chances and spurning the ones they did.
“We’re lacking a bit of cutting edge in the front third and unfortunately at the moment, we’re not scoring goals,” Postecoglou said.
“And if you’re not scoring goals you can’t win games.
“Overall it was a decent enough performance but we’re struggling a little bit in that area, and we need to address it.”
While their system is generally working, the Roar are now simply unable to do any damage with the lion’s share of possession they hold during their games.
And it’s not about to get any easier – Postecoglou said it was ‘unlikely’ that key attacking pair Broich and Henrique would be fit for their New Year’s Eve clash at Melbourne Victory, while captain Matt Smith may have reinjured his groin.
But Rocky Visconte, who made the foul that resulted in the 88th-minute penalty to United that was ultimately the difference, said the team wouldn’t dwell on their poor form.
“It’s natural to be disappointed, especially the way the game finished. But we’re going to keep our heads up,” he said.
“We’re not going to change, we’re going to keep playing our way. We’ve just got to look where we went wrong and move on with the same frame of mind.”
The match was a typical derby, with action aplenty both on and off the field.
Referee Kris Griffiths-Jones dished out 11 yellow cards, while there was plenty of colour in the stands with two boisterous groups of supporters locked in verbal battle.
The crowd of 6927 was in good spirits, and that made for a great atmosphere – but Postecoglou wasn’t impressed.
“It was okay. There were 6000 people. There was a derby on Friday night that was a bit different,” referring to the grand spectacle that was the Melbourne derby.
“It was fantastic for our supporters to come down the highway and make noise, and they supported the boys right to the end.
“It was a decent enough atmosphere but you’d like to think you can get more than 6000 people to a game of football these days.”
