Auckland FC
- Auckland FC are 2nd in the A-League on 40 points from 23 games while Melbourne Victory are 4th on 35 points after 23 games.
- Auckland FC average 1.64 goals scored per game and 1.27 goals conceded at home in the A-League this season.
- Steve Corica’s side have won two, drawn two and lost one of their last five A-League matches, results that include a 1-2 home defeat to Macarthur FC and a 1-1 away draw with Adelaide United.
- Corica has instilled some possession-based football into Auckland FC and they have the ability to control games when they want to.
- But they are also able to hit teams on the counter with their directness through the middle of the field and have conceded more than they would have liked to do so.
Melbourne Victory
- Arthur Diles’s Melbourne Victory are more direct in their approach and favour verticality through the midfield areas.
- Their last three A-League results are two wins and a defeat - two 4-1 home wins over Macarthur FC and Central Coast Mariners and a 0-1 home loss to Wellington Phoenix.
- The Australian side could be a little fragile at the back here, but they have the firepower to punish Auckland FC on the break.
Head-to-Head
They are still winless in their last two home games against Melbourne Victory ( 1 draw, 1 loss ), but the odds on the Kiwi side are good enough to take at 2.1 for this fixture.
Betting Insights
A 3-1 win for the hosts looks possible here, although we’ll have to settle for both teams to score ( 1.55 ) and over 2.5 goals ( 1.65 ) for our main bet.
Prediction
The game has the look of a playoff match-up between two well-matched teams, but Auckland’s more balanced approach should see them through in an end-to-end game.
