TFT Issue 3421!

I daresay folks will want to back Macarthur FC here, and I honestly couldn’t blame anyone if they did. Victory are yet again facing a match without some seriously important players. Their best centre-back Shotton is still out, playmaker Rojas is still out, and left-back Traore is still suspended. Now they’re joined on the sidelines by right-back Roux, attacker Folami, and dribbler McManaman. It’s at least half of their starting eleven out – again.

I can’t oppose them here though, which is for various reasons. Firstly, Victory have played well lately – let me be quite clear on this. I wouldn’t read too much into their 5-4 win against Western Sydney Wanderers; it was two teams going at one another with zero control of the game. However, they were marvellous against Sydney FC, and arguably deserved a draw from it, and they were very good against Central Coast Mariners, whom they should have beaten. Had Gestede’s header not been harshly ruled out by VAR, they’d have won that game, and for Central Coast Mariners’ tactical cowardice, I’d argue that they deserved the win. 

They’re obviously not perfect, Victory. I mean, against the Mariners they looked clueless in the first-half. The game-plan had obviously been to not concede early on, which they managed to do after Acton (who was actually excellent on the day) let a Simon header slip under his body. Victory didn’t press the Mariners though, seemingly content to go in 1-0 down at the break, which tells me that they’re still leaning on their manager a lot for guidance. In the second-half though, they were much better, and much more dangerous. Again, they should have won that one, although I’m going to sit on the fence as to what would have transpired had Central Coast Mariners actually tried to score more than one goal.

What I see now in the Victory squad is bonds growing between the lads on the pitch – even the kids. Young midfielder Barnett has done so well, for example, that they actually missed his presence on the pitch last time out. He keeps the ball moving fast for them, and helps pressurise opponents on the ball. Folami has really come into his own lately, for another example, and his speed and dribbling has caused a lot of teams a lot of problems. Ironically, it is the kids that are beginning to shine the most for Victory, which makes Markovic’s departure all the more quizzical in the big picture.

They obviously do need some of the more experienced heads, though. Without Gestede up front, there’s no point of reference, and unless they’re playing on the break then they don’t get anywhere when he’s out. Without Rojas, there’s not that silky creator to produce a moment of magic around the box. Without Butterfield, there’s no real control of the game in midfield. Without McManaman, there’s no outstanding dribbler/match-winner. However, it’s the kids that have provided that extra speed, desire, and energy since Brebner left his role, and they’re turning this club around, slowly but surely.

The problem today is that they’re without Folami and McManaman though, which means that breaking down a patient, well-organised Macarthur FC side – other than from set pieces – simply isn’t going to happen, even with Jovanovic out for the visitors. They need to find a way to win free-kicks and corners in order to give Gestede a chance here, and I can’t see who is going to do that with Folami, McManaman, and Rojas all out. Kruse might, I suppose, but as the only real threat, he should be marshalled well enough. I don’t see the home team hurting Macarthur FC enough here, to be frank. Defensively speaking though, I think that Ryan and Ansell have started to do well, especially with Broxham filling in at left-back. He’s not a good left-back; don’t get me wrong. However, he does lead and guide from that side, and both Ryan and Ansell need that. Presumably Anderson will play instead of Roux, and I am fine with that too. Macarthur FC do not consistently hurt teams so Victory’s defence doesn’t bother me.

The real question here is whether you believe Macarthur FC can break the deadlock or not. I won’t deny that they’re more likely to do so, especially if they can get Derbyshire the service he needs, which generally comes from Susaeta. However, they’ve stopped moving the ball as quickly as they used to, which I personally attribute to fatigue, and that’s making them a lot easier to defend against. Rose can come into the equation and occasionally make something happen but he’s not consistent enough. Franjic’s absence at full-back leaves them without yet another viable attacking option that is hard to deal with too.

Essentially, Macarthur FC are left with a team that knows how to defend, will control games well enough, but doesn’t hurt teams consistently enough without encouragement from their opponents – which I doubt they’ll get from Victory here, who will most likely just sit off them and wait for opportunities on the break. It’s going to be about Macarthur FC breaking Victory down, and given that both Sydney FC and Central Coast Mariners didn’t do that very well lately, I’m inclined to doubt them winning this match. They’ve got very little by way of natural flair, the visitors – they were geared up to control matches, not dominate them. I can see them making this game very hard for themselves, in short.

Furthermore, keep in mind how well Acton has been playing in the Victory goal. On the few occasions opponents have come up against him, he’s done himself and his team proud. I just don’t think that this is the right time to oppose Victory – or rather, it’s not the right team to back to beat them right now, and nor is it the right time to do so. Don’t forget how tired the teams were last week; that’s not going to go away. I think both teams will end up cancelling one another out today, and if that happens, it’ll be a low-scoring affair.