Krishna double helps Phoenix beat Wanderers in five-goal thriller

A second-half double from Roy Krishna has seen Wellington Phoenix beat Western Sydney Wanderers 3-2 in a Hyundai A-League thriller on Tuesday night.

In a dramatic night at a wet ANZ Stadium, scores were locked at 1-1 with just eight minutes left before a stunning end to the match.

Krishna got the first of his brace on 82 minutes when he rounded an on-rushing Vedran Janjetovic, before the Wanderers responded two minutes later through Keanu Baccus.

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And just when it looked like the game would end all square, Krishna popped-up with a brilliant header at the near post to hand the Phoenix a massive three points.

The result not only puts Wellington 10 points clear of the Wanderers, but also sees the club equal a club-record seven-game unbeaten run.

It was a horror start to the match for the Wanderers, with star playmaker Alexander Baumjohann forced off inside five minutes with a hamstring injury.

Coach Markus Babbel’s mood wouldn’t have improved 11 minutes later when his side was originally awarded a penalty after Bruce Kamau went down in the box, only for the decision to be overturned by the VAR.

Despite the setbacks, it was the home side who were on the front foot, but they fell behind nine minutes before the break.

Soon after Krishna had hit the post, the Phoenix made their next chance count as Louis Fenton’s driving run saw him exchange passes with Sarpreet Singh, before the wingback controlled on his chest and fire into the bottom corner.

But the Wanderers were level just six minutes later as Nick Fitzgerald's corner to the front post drew Filip Kurto off his line, but Brendan Hamill got there first to glance into the empty net.

The introduction of new signing Kwame Yeboah – for the injured Oriol Riera – didn’t slow the Wanderers down after the break, with both Kamau and Jordan O’Doherty both squandering excellent chances.

Wellington also handed a debut to new recruit Cillian Sheridan and the Irishman wasn’t far away from becoming an instant hero with a fierce strike which went just over the bar with 11 minutes left.

Yeboah almost stole the lead for the Wanderers when he broke through one-on-one, only to be denied by a great save by Kurto.

And it proved crucial as Wellington went in front a minute later from Krishna sparking a crazy end to the match.

See all the goals and relive all the action and talking points in our LIVE BLOG below.