Western United is gearing up for a huge Liberty A-League Women contest against league-leading Melbourne City on Thursday evening.
Match Details
Liberty A-League Women Round 14
Melbourne City vs Western United
Thursday, 25 January
Kick-off: 5:00pm AEDT
AAMI Park, Melbourne
Broadcast: The match will be broadcast live and free on 10Play, and on Paramount+
Western United Team News
Kat Smith has named an extended 20-player provisional squad for the clash with two huge inclusions among the names.
Kahli Johnson has not played since Smith took over in December last year but is in line to change that fact after recovering from a leg injury over the new year.
She is joined in the extended squad by fellow attacker Catherine Zimmerman who is in with a chance of making her Western United debut if she earns a place on matchday.
Hannah Keane will hoping to return to the starting XI having come off the bench in the last two matches, while Keiwa Hieda will be eager to keep her place having scored her third goal of the campaign last time out.
Western United squad: 1. Alyssa DALL’OSTE (gk), 2. Stacey PAPADOPOULOS, 4. Jaclyn SAWICKI, 6. Chloe LOGARZO, 7. Kiara DE DOMIZIO, 9. Hannah KEANE, 10. Kahli JOHNSON, 11. Emma ROBERS, 12. Lucy RICHARDS, 13. Avaani PRAKASH, 14. Natasha DAKIC, 15. Adriana TARANTO, 16. Melissa TARANTO, 18. Grace MAHER, 19. Tyla Jay VLAJNIC, 20. Keiwa HIEDA, 21. Hillary BEALL (gk), 22. Alana CERNE, 24. Julia SARDO, 34. Catherine ZIMMERMAN
Last time out
There was a sense of déjà vu for Western United as it won 1-0 for the second straight home game at City Vista Pavilion and Sports Field thanks to Hieda’s strike early in the second half.
United dominated throughout, particularly in the second half but couldn’t add further to the scoreline, while Hillary Beall held onto her third clean sheet of the campaign.
The Opponent
Melbourne City have been a dominant force in the Liberty A-League this season, opening up a seven-point lead on the rest of their competitors.
The league leaders have won nine out of their 13 matches and are comfortably the league’s top scorers, finding the back of the net 30 times so far.
Young gun Daniela Galic is having an excellent season with five goals and four assists, while star striker Hannah Wilkinson and Rhianna Pollicina have both also scored five times each.
WATCH: Highlights from the 2-2 draw in Round 3
City will be without their two joint-top scorers for this game though, with Holly McNamara remaining out with a long-term injury and Emina Ekic suspended after receiving a red card in their win over Wellington Phoenix last week.
Western United have typically relished big games and have a strong record against City with two wins and a draw in the three meetings, but the Green and Black will need to be on top form to earn a similar result in this one.
Key Matchup: Chloe Logarzo vs Daniela Galic
There’ll be something of a battle of generations in midfield in this one with Matildas star Chloe Logarzo coming up against City’s starlet in Galic.
Logarzo is back to some of her very best form at the moment, relishing an advanced role in Smith’s side with five goals to her name for the season.
The Western United co-captain continues to lead by example on and off the pitch and will be looking to emulate her last performance against Melbourne City, where she came off the bench to score a match-winning brace in December 2022.
The No.6 will have to be at her best in this one to guard against Galic, the 17-year-old who is continuing to grow in City’s side.
A first career hat-trick three weeks ago punctuated her breakout campaign and she will undoubtedly be eager to prove herself again in a local rivalry.
With her experience, quality and confidence to match, Logarzo will be backing herself to win this particular individual battle and help her side take out the three points.
Western United Player to Watch: Hannah Keane
With two goals and an assist in three previous games, Keane has stepped up against Melbourne City in the past and will be itching to do so again on Thursday.
The No.9 has come off the bench in each of United’s last two fixtures and will be hoping to break back into the starting XI this time around. Whether she starts or comes off the bench, the American will certainly be on the hunt for a goal.
The reigning golden boot winner struck early last time United faced City back in Round 3 and with two goals to her name so far this season, she will be looking to add to her total and help guide her side to victory this time around.
Words from Kat Smith
On her reaction to the win against Adelaide last time out and the changes at half-time
“It was pleasing to see the second half performance, we created a lot more chances with some of the tweaks we made, personnel wise and the formation. Our game style didn’t change in terms of our intent and our intensity, which was really pleasing.”
On facing the challenge of taking on the league-leading Melbourne City
“It’s going in with knowing that we have the quality, we’ve got the belief in what we’re doing. In this league where we want to win a title, you need to beat every team, whether they’re sitting top at the time or at the bottom.
“We know that each team that we play against, we need to make sure that we perform in a way that gives us the opportunity for results. We’ll certainly challenge with the best on Thursday.”
