Nix pull off statement win over City
Talay’s side further prove credentials by seeing off title contenders in Auckland
Mark this down as one of the most important results for the Phoenix this season.
They beat second-placed Melbourne City 1-0, with David Ball’s well-taken goal the difference.
The win will provide a huge injection of confidence, after a recent spell of games where they couldn’t quite find their best.
This was different. They were sharp and incisive on attack, without perhaps the final touch, and gritty and well organised on defence.
It was a perfect scenario, one that made you yearn for more A-League football in Auckland: A bumper crowd of 15,347, a crisp summer night and some thrilling action, with both teams providing end-to-end entertainment in the second half.
Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay brought in Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi in place of the suspended Tim Payne at right back, while Matti Steinmann was restored to central midfield, after being a late scratching in Perth last week due to illness. Gary Hooper was restored to the starting line-up, meaning Ulises Davila shifted from a No 10 role to a position wide on the right.
As they did at Eden Park in December, the Phoenix made a nervy start. Three times in the first five minutes, they gave away possession near their penalty area, as Melbourne City employed a high press.
The Phoenix were trying to play out — as Talay encourages — but flirted with disaster, and goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic narrowly averted calamity when an early goal kick went straight to City striker Jamie
Maclaren. But gradually the Phoenix built their way into the game, finding space on both flanks, if not deep penetration. Melbourne are a tall, physical team and made their presence felt, though Ball went close, his effort cleared off the line after a delightful Davila through ball.
The Phoenix looked to have gone ahead in the 27th minute when Steinmann steered home a Reno Piscopo free kick, after the ball fell into his path via a deflection. The goal was given, before a familiar VAR delay, which eventually concluded the German was marginally offside when the set piece was taken.
Melbourne were content to soak up pressure and spring on the counter, as the Phoenix enjoyed 65 per cent possession in the first spell. But they found it hard to find space and time between and behind a well organised City defence, with two shots a low output given the balance of play.
Marinovic invited trouble early in the second half, with his scrambled clearance delivered to the feet of Adrian Retamar, but the midfielder couldn’t hit the target from distance.
Marinovic was forced into two more saves soon after, as the Wellington team kept coughing up possession in dangerous areas, while the Victorians seemed to flick the switch.
But after soaking up substantial pressure, including four successive corners, the Phoenix hit with a lightning strike. Cameron Devlin released Hooper down the right, and his pinpoint cross was met with an unerring finish from Ball. It was just reward for the tireless Ball for the way he constantly gets at defenders.
The Phoenix sat deeper in the closing stages, as City pushed forward, albeit without creating too many chances in a tense final period. Wellington Phoenix 1 (D Ball 58) Melbourne City 0. Halftime: 0-0.