Adelaide United and Perth Glory will meet in Round 1 of the 2013-14 A-League season at Coopers Stadium on Sunday October 13 at 4:30pm ACDT (5:00pm AEDT).
Adelaide United and Perth Glory will meet in Round 1 of the 2013-14 A-League season at Coopers Stadium on Sunday October 13 at 4:30pm ACDT (5:00pm AEDT).
Head-to-head: Played: 24, Wins: Adelaide 11, Perth 8, Draws: 5
Previous encounter: Perth 1-1 Adelaide, March 30, 2013
Form: Past five matches (including pre-season):
Adelaide: WWDLW Glory: WWWDW
The Game: Adelaide fans will be excited to see that influence new coach Josep Gombau will have on the side in their season bow. Gombau - a former Barcelona youth coach - has taken the reins following John Kosmina's second stint at Hindmarsh - now Coopers - Stadium. Kosmina had the Reds flying early last campaign, but the club's first-team fortunes went off the rails. Whether or not Gombau can get Adelaide firing on all cylinders in the season's infancy, but with unknown quantities Sergio Cirio and Isaias Sanchez coming in from Spain, it could prove masterstroke from the Adelaide board. Gombau will have his side playing a quick passing game, while Glory - under Alastair Edwards - will try to do similar after their current boss took over from Ian Ferguson, and turned Perth's fortunes considerably. The WA outfit have a relatively young squad, although could be flustered by the 11th-hour departure of centre-back Ljubo Milicevic.
The big issue: Adelaide - adapting to the game plan. Pundits are predicting a 'tiki-taka'-like style from Gombau, however it is one thing to enforce it, and another to see it through. Whether the Reds have enough matchday experience from the pre-season to carry out the entertaining tactics remains to be seen.
Perth - defence and maturity. The loss of Milicevic on the eve of the season has hurt the Glory, despite Edwards' insistence otherwise. Combine that with the departures of Liam Miller and Dean Heffernan, and a lot of on-field experience has vacated the nib Stadium. Edwards' youth - literally his offspring Ryan and Cameron who he brought to the club, and also the squad's youngsters - must rise to the occasion.
The game breaker: Isaias Sanchez - the Spanish 26-year-old has spent his career in his home nation, most recently for third- and now second-tier club Ponferradina. Playing in wide midfield on the left, the former Espanyol man will add a touch of class to the Reds' engine room. He comes to Adelaide alongside another former Barcelona youth product Sergio Cirio - with the pair a fairly unknown quantity heading into the season.