Western United will be out for revenge against Melbourne Victory in the Isuzu UTE A-League Men on Thursday night.
Match Details
Isuzu UTE A-League Men Round 21
Western United vs Melbourne Victory
Thursday, 14 March
Kick-off: 7:00pm AEDT
AAMI Park, Melbourne
Broadcast: The match will be broadcast live on Paramount+
Western United Team News
John Aloisi has named an unchanged 20-man extended squad for the clash, sticking with the group of players that has won two games in a row for the first time this season.
Western United’s first-choice back four played together for the first time last week and should do so again, while the Matthew Grimaldi and Nikita Rukavytsya will be angling for starts after they both scored off the bench last week.
Western United squad: 4. James DONACHIE, 6. Tomoki IMAI, 8. Lachie WALES, 9. Michael RUHS, 10. Steven LUSTICA, 11. Daniel PENHA, 13. Nikita RUKAVYTSYA, 17. Ben GARUCCIO, 19. Josh RISDON, 21. Sebastian PASQUALI, 22. Kane VIDMAR, 32. Angus THURGATE, 33. Matt SUTTON (gk), 37. Luke VICKERY, 39. Matthew GRIMALDI, 43. Khoder KADDOUR, 44. Jordan LAUTON, 49. Jake NAJDOVSKI, 70. Michael VONJA (gk), 77. Riku DANZAKI
Last time out
Western United scored a brilliant 3-1 victory against Western Sydney Wanderers, coming from behind to take all three points last week.
WATCH: Western United runs riot at CommBank Stadium
Daniel Penha put United in front after assisting Grimaldi’s equaliser, and the Brazilian then set up Rukavytsya to seal the victory later on.
Previous Meetings
Western United has enjoyed a thrilling rivalry with Melbourne Victory, with the feeling that just about anything can happen each time the two sides meet.
The Green and Black has also stood up for the big moments, winning seven of the 14 meetings with two draws and five defeats.
United’s most famous win against Victory came in the 2022 semi-final, overturning a 1-0 defeat in the first leg to triumph 4-1 in the return fixture and go on to win the Grand Final the following.
Key Matchup: Bruno Fornaroli vs James Donachie
After returning to the side to great effect against the Wanderers last time out, James Donachie will be eager to impress against his former side and help lead Western United’s defence once again.
The centre-back has endured a troubled season with injury and suspension limiting his appearances thus far, but last week was a demonstration of his quality and the impact he can have for Aloisi’s men.
His height and physical strength makes him a nightmare for a striker to beat, while his leadership and experience help raise the levels of everyone else around him.
Donachie will be coming up against Bruno Fornaroli who is fresh from scoring his first two Isuzu UTE A-League goals since December in Victory’s win over Adelaide United last week.
Called up to the Socceroos squad again for the upcoming window, Fornaroli will be eager to rediscover a similar run of form to the one that saw him travel to the Asian Cup in January.
That battle of high-quality, experienced players could take centre stage and Donachie will be hoping he can shut out his opponent and limit any Victory advances on the night.
Western United Player to Watch: Daniel Penha
Daniel Penha is arguably the most exciting player to watch in the entire competition, and he will bring extra motivation into this meeting with Victory.
After scoring the opening goal against United’s rivals a month ago, Penha picked up an injury while celebrating and was left in the changerooms as United fell to a heart-breaking late defeat.
Now putting that behind him, the electric Brazilian will hope to have a similar impact on the scoresheet and see out the game to help Western United claim the win.
Penha has scored in each of his last three starts and chipped in with his first two assists of the campaign last week.
At full fitness and flying on the pitch, Penha will look to leave his mark on proceedings and help carry United towards the three points.
Words from John Aloisi
On whether he will be drawing on the last encounter with Melbourne Victory to motivate the side
“It’s more about the way that we’ve been playing and the way that we want to play against Melbourne Victory.
“We know they’re a good side, they’ve got good individuals in there and they’re very well coached, so we have to be at our best. It’s a completely different game to when we played them last time.”
On the boost that Daniel Penha’s form continues to give the team
“Yeah, we’re hoping. We don’t just want to rely on Penha, but we know how good he is and if he keeps on playing like he is, then we’re better as a team.
“We feel that even though he had that little setback with the ankle injury, it probably wasn’t a bad thing just to freshen up again. Now, let’s hope until the end of the season he stays injury-free and his form stays the same.”
