Western United v Central Coast Mariners

Western United come into this game off of a 3-2 win over Brisbane Roar last weekend, ending their run of games without a win at three. Central Coast were able to extend their unbeaten run to five with an impressive 3-0 win over Adelaide United. 

Western United now sit three points behind league leaders, Melbourne City, but have two games in hand, meaning the title is in their own hands. They had struggled for a couple of weeks, losing to Sydney FC and only managing to draw against the two Sydney sides. They were able to beat Brisbane Roar last weekend but didn’t look at their best and their one rock solid looking defence appears to have holes in it for the first time this season. 

Central Coast Mariners have put in a string of impressive performances over the past few weeks, picking up wins over Brisbane Roar, Macarthur and Adelaide United. This has moved them back into Finals Series contention, with the side just three points behind sixth placed, Melbourne Victory. 

Both sides are in decent goalscoring form with Western United scoring eight in their last five and Central Coast eclipsing that with an average of two goals a game over the same period. That puts plenty of value in backing the over 2.5 goals market.

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Wellington Phoenix v Melbourne City

Wellington Phoenix picked up all three points last time out, beating Brisbane Roar 3-0 in midweek to move into the top four. Melbourne City also claimed a win in their last game, beating Macarthur 1-0 to maintain their position at the top of the table. 

Wellington have been Jekyll and Hyde in the A-League this season, boasting the best home record with 23 points from a possible 30, but their away form has been woeful with just four points from a potential 21 so far this season. They have been able to climb into the top four despite this and will be looking for another positive result at home this weekend. 

Melbourne City are still the league leaders, having lost just three times this season. They are unbeaten in nine games and have scored 42 times this season, 12 more than any other side. Despite this, they haven’t been able to pull away from Western United and still face a struggle to retain their A-League title. 

This game should be the best of the weekend with two really talented sides coming into the contest full of confidence. Wellington’s home form is superb but they are coming up against the side with the best away form in the league, and both sides could end up cancelling each other out. Backing Wellington on the double chance market seems to give the most value based on that thinking.

Adelaide United v Melbourne Victory

Adelaide United have now gone three games without a win following their 3-0 loss to Central Coast last week. Melbourne Victory drew their fourth game in a row last weekend against Western Sydney Wanderers, all of them by a 1-1 scoreline. 

Adelaide have hit a poor run of form, going three games without victory and slipping nine points behind Western United in the title race. They now face a bit of a fight to keep their place in the top six with the sides below them having played less games and only sitting within three points of the Reds. 

Melbourne Victory have seen their last four games all end with a 1-1 scoreline as the side make themselves hard to beat but without having enough in the final third to see off games. They occupy sixth place at the moment and have games in hand over Sydney below them but they will need to be careful about dropping points as the run in draws closer. 

Neither of these sides look capable of keeping a clean sheet at the moment, Adelaide have conceded 12 goals in their last six games whilst Melbourne Victory have seen their defence breached in nine of their last 10 games. This gives plenty of confidence when backing goals in the both teams to score market.

Sydney FC v Western Sydney Wanderers

Sydney FC have seen their league form falter in recent weeks, losing against Newcastle Jets before only being able to manage a point against Macarthur in midweek. Western Sydney haven’t fared much better with draws against Adelaide United and Melbourne Victory keeping them from mounting a finals series push. 

Sydney have had one eye on the Asian Champions League and this may cost them in the league with the side now sitting outside the top six but having played three games more than some of their rivals above them. They need to get back to winning ways but a derby game isn’t the type of match you’d look for in a must win encounter. 

Western Sydney haven’t really been able to get going this season, failing to win consecutive games this term. They’ve drawn their last two games, which has been enough to stop them getting sucked in a contest to avoid the wooden spoon but hasn’t helped in pushing them into a finals series race. 

A Sydney derby always has plenty of talking points and, with both sides having their own struggles this season, this weekend should be no different. Both sides will be desperate for the win as they hope for a top six finish and this could lead to plenty of action in both penalty boxes. The both teams to score market looks to have plenty of value ahead of this contest.

Macarthur FC v Perth Glory

Macarthur secured a 2-2 draw with Sydney FC last time out, extending their run without a win to three games. Perth Glory have now gone nine games without a win, drawing 0-0 with Newcastle Jets in midweek, finding themselves rooted to the foot of the A-League table. 

Macarthur have struggled to keep pace with the teams at the top of the league, finding wins hard to come by with just one in their last seven games. They’ve been able to score plenty, with eight goals in that period, but their defensive fragility has been highlighted with 16 goals conceded during their poor run. They remain in the top six but face a fight to play finals series football next season unless they turn their form around.

Perth Glory are on a horrible run of form that has seen them pick up just three points from a possible 27 and left them stuck at the bottom of the table. Goal scoring has been the biggest issue for the side, with just five goals in their awful nine game run.

Macarthur enter this game on a bad run of form but a match at home against lowly Perth Glory feels like the best way to try and rediscover some form. Whilst Macarthur are favourites, there is still lots of value in backing them against a Perth side that doesn’t look like they can buy a win.

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