Melbourne City will be hoping to further close the gap on Sydney FC when they face Wellington Phoenix in the pick of A-League Round 19 matches this weekend.
With Sydney’s derby clash with the Wanderers postponed due to wet weather on Saturday and the Sky Blues receiving a bye in Round 19, City have the chance to put some scoreboard pressure on the competition leaders – if they can overcome Wellington on Saturday at Eden Park.
City are coming off a confidence-boosting derby triumph over Melbourne Victory last weekend and would come within seven points of Sydney if they were to prevail over Phoenix, who lost 4-2 to Perth.
Round 19 kicks off at Coopers Stadium as Adelaide United play host to Central Coast Mariners on Friday night. Both teams are coming off last-start defeats, with Adelaide falling 2-1 to Brisbane and the Mariners going down 4-3 to bottom-placed Newcastle.
Speaking of the Jets, they will be hoping to launch new coach Carl Robinson’s tenure with a win when they face Western Sydney Wanderers at Bankwest Stadium on Saturday night. Newcastle claimed their first victory since November when they edged the Mariners on Sunday, while the Wanderers had the week off due to their derby with Sydney being called off.
Round 19 concludes with Western United taking on Brisbane Roar on Sunday afternoon. United had the bye last week, while Brisbane propelled themselves into the top six with an excellent 2-1 win at home to Adelaide.
Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory have the bye this week.
A-League Round 19 Fixtures
Friday February 14
Adelaide United vs Central Coast Mariners
Saturday February 15
Wellington Phoenix vs Melbourne City
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Newcastle Jets
Sunday February 16
Western United vs Brisbane Roar