Central Coast face Sydney FC in Round 9 of the 2013-14 A-League season at Bluetongue Stadium on Saturday December 7 at 7.45pm AEDT.
Central Coast face Sydney FC in Round 9 of the 2013-14 A-League season at Bluetongue Stadium on Saturday December 7 at 7.45pm AEDT.
Head-to-head: Played: 25, Wins: Mariners 8, Sky Blues 10, Draws: 7
Previous encounter: Sky Blues 2-0 Mariners, March 9 2013
Past five matches: Mariners: DWLDW Sky Blues: WWWWD
The Game: Few would have expected Sydney to be sitting higher than Central Coast on the table almost a third of the way into the season, but four consecutive wins have lifted the Sky Blues into third. Frank Farina's men continue to find a way to claim wins and must be given credit for the way they have turned their season around after a slow start. The Mariners have struggled to get going, but have lost just once in seven. Phil Moss' men were perhaps fortunate to escape with a point in their 0-0 draw against the Melbourne Victory last time out and really need to start picking up points and building momentum as the campaign goes on.
The big issue: Mariners – getting more out of their attack after scoring just eight goals in seven games this season. Moss has plenty of talent at his disposal, but just who starts and in which position remains a big question. Marcos Flores leads the Mariners' goalscoring with three penalties, perhaps highlighting the problem. Michael McGlinchey, Mitchell Duke, Daniel McBreen, Matt Simon and Mile Sterjovski are all talented players, but Moss needs to find his best combinations and see if they can start finding the net as regularly as the Mariners need.
Sky Blues – producing their best without the injured Alessandro Del Piero. The Italian star has been ruled out of the encounter after hurting his hamstring in their win over the Newcastle Jets. Sydney got the job done without their marquee man after his substitution, but are likely to find it more difficult against the Mariners. Whether Farina's side can cover for Del Piero's creativity and influence remains to be seen, despite showing they are capable of scoring without the veteran.
The game breaker: Michael McGlinchey – the New Zealand international may have been pushed out wide to accommodate the arrival of Flores, but he can still break games open. With the Mariners needing goals, McGlinchey looks the most likely candidate to step up and take the game to the Sky Blues with either a strike or an assist. He would fancy his chances against either Sebastian Ryall or Ali Abbas should they start in the full-back positions for Sydney.