Western Sydney and Brisbane take us into Matchweek 17 of the A-League season with a Friday night fixture.
The previews and selections for the four best A-League matches are in!
Teams look hard to split this week with neutral venues and in form travelling squads.
Western Sydney Wanderers vs. Brisbane Roar
April 16th 7:05pm
Western Sydney Wanderers welcome the Brisbane Roar to Bankwest Stadium tonight for a mid-table clash.
The Wanderers and Roar find themselves sitting in sixth and seventh spot of the league with the visitors enjoying a few games in hand on their higher ranked opponents.
While a win will not get the Roar immediately ahead of the Wanderers, it will bridge the five-point gap between the two sides.
The market looks to have overvalued the ladder position of the Wanderers here and Brisbane are coming off a dogged 2-1 win over Macarthur FC.
Home ground advantage for the Wanderers will clearly help but the back-half needs to be wary of the attacking threat posed by Dylan Wenzel-Halls and Riku Danzaki who were both on target against the Bulls.
Prediction: Western Sydney 2 Brisbane 2
Suggested Bet: Draw at $3.4
Suggested Same Game Multi:
Leg 1: Draw
Leg 2: Over 2.5 Goals
Combined Odds: $7.5
Western United vs. Central Coast Mariners
April 17th 5:05pm
Western United and Central Coast both travel to UTAS Stadium in Tasmania for their Matchweek 17 clash on Saturday night.
After a sensational 2-1 derby win over Melbourne City Western United backed it up with a 1-0 win over Newcastle but failed to make it three wins in a row following a disappointing 3-2 loss to Wellington last Sunday.
Meanwhile, the table toppers Central Coast Mariners could only scrounge a 2-2 draw against Western Sydney last Tuesday after an Oliver Bozanic 83rd spot-kick ensured the Mariners came away with point after going 2-1 down.
Tough to line up how both teams will go at a neutral venue but given the Mariners come into this match with the freshen legs, it might just pave the way for three points.
As usual, Western United playmaking genius Alessandro Diamanti is the man to look out for and if he can be contained then the Mariners will be hard to hold out.
Think this one ends in a draw.
Prediction: Western United 1 Central Coast Mariners 1
Suggested Bet: Draw at $3.4
Melbourne City vs. Melbourne Victory
April 17th 7:10pm
It’s Melbourne Derby 2.0 when the Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory resume hostilities at AAMI Park on Saturday night.
The mental scars and nightmares from the 6-0 defeat imposed upon Victory by City in the first derby this season on March 6 will still haunt Grant Brebnar’s men.
It was arguably the worst ever defeat suffered by Victory in A-League history but there might be a chance for redemption given its most recent win against Newcastle last week.
The Victory finally broke through for its third win of the season thanks to a 2-1 victory of fellow cellar dwellers Newcastle.
City clearly have the premiership on its mind this year and will finish somewhere near the top of the ladder, but it cannot get complacent despite hitting the Victory for six.
Highly unlikely Victory get the three points here, but a draw is definitely on the cards.
Prediction: Melbourne City 1 Melbourne Victory 1
Suggested Bet: Draw at $5.5
Sydney FC vs. Adelaide United
April 18th 4:05pm
Sydney FC and Adelaide United go head to head at Leichhardt Oval on Sunday afternoon with both teams looking to cement their spot in the top four.
The Sky Blues were left in shock and awe last Saturday after conceding a 98th minute injury time penalty against Melbourne City.
With victory only seconds way, Sydney relinquished a 1-0 advantage to come away with a measly point.
Adelaide United, however, finished with the proverbial wet sail against Macarthur on Wednesday to come away a big a 3-1 victory at Hindmarsh Stadium.
With scores locked a 1-1, a Craig Goodwin penalty in the 72nd minute followed up by a Ben Halloran 81st minute sealer ensured the Reds came away with all three points to hold fort only a point league leader Central Coast.
United do boast a 1-0 against Sydney early last month thanks to a Goodwin spot-kick but travelling to NSW against the reigning premier is never easy.
Think the Sky Blues, with the extra handful of days off, should get the points in this one.
Prediction: Sydney 3 Adelaide 2
Suggested Bet: Sydney FC head to head at $1.67
