Adelaide United captain Stefan Mauk believes opposition defences should be ‘scared’ of the Reds young guns champing at the bit to get off the subs bench.
Mauk netted the second goal in Adelaide’s 2-0 victory against ten-man Melbourne City after 16-year-old Mohamed Toure set up his skipper five minutes after arriving on the Coopers Stadium pitch.
Toure was introduced alongside another pair of dynamic Adelaide youngsters in Pacifique Niyongabire and Kusini Yengi, while 17-year-old Yaya Dukuly started his second straight A-League match for the Reds.
An injection of youthful exuberance is the perfect weapon when opponents are tiring, according to 25-year-old Mauk, who was celebrating Adelaide’s fourth point from two games in 2020/21.
“I think they have got a lot excitement about them, an X-factor,” Mauk said.
“I think that they come on and they are not scared to make mistakes.
“They want to run at people and I think, as a defender, if you are tired, I’d be pretty scared.”
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“They are brave, they have no fear,” added head coach Carl Veart.
“When we attack, they are exciting to watch.
“As a coach, you can just sit back and have a smile on your face because you know they are going to be positive and attack defenders.
“Now that we’ve got Tomi [Juric] here, he’s a great leader and role model for these young players to see what it’s like to play at the next level.”
Veart remains undefeated in seven A-League matches in the Adelaide dugout, having led the Reds to three wins and four draws since taking over as interim coach following the 2019/20 lockdown.
And the club favourite had no hesitation in revealing his game plan with his not-so-secret weapons Toure, Niyongabire and Yengi.
“The speed that these young players have and the X-factor that they have, the last 15-20 minutes is very exciting,” Veart added.
“That what we’re going to use them as at this stage.
“We’re going to keep bringing them on for that last 15-20 minutes and get them running at defenders.”
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Next Fixtures
Melbourne City v Western United
Sunday, 17 January 2021
Venue: AAMI Park
Kick-off: 6.05pm AEDT
Adelaide United v Melbourne Victory
Saturday, 23 January 2021
Venue: Coopers Stadium
Kick-off: 7.10pm AEDT
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