Round 21 of the Hyundai A-League kicks off Friday, the 24th of February with a blockbuster clash between Melbourne City and Sydney FC. The game of the round will be played at AAMI Park from 7.50pm. We preview the game in full, as well as the rest of the weekend’s action in our Week 21 Preview & Betting Tips below.
A-League Round 21 Betting Tips
Melbourne City vs Sydney FC (Friday 7.50pm AEDT)
The game of the round will see ladder leaders Sydney FC travel to south to take on Melbourne City on Friday night. Sydney lost their first game of the year last week against cross town rivals the Wanderers and have looked vulnerable at times over the past few weeks. City are coming off a 5-1 decimation of Wellington in New Zealand and look extremely dangerous after gaining half of their starting unit back from suspension.
Melbourne will take solace in the fact they are undefeated against Sydney in their last five games, who have an impressive 14-5-1 record on the season so far. For all their success this season, Sydney haven’t played their best football in Melbourne, with just 1 win from 4 games. With their recent vulnerability combined with the travel factor, I think a rejuvenated Melbourne City can earn the chocolates (or at least draw in the process) here.
TIP: Melbourne City (draw no bet) - $2 at William Hill
Brisbane Roar vs Wellington Phoenix (Saturday 5.35pm AEDT)
After being in a good position to finish top six and playing some good football, the Phoenix have dropped off the last few weeks. With three losses on the trot to Western Sydney, Sydney and Melbourne City, they now find themselves 5 points behind the 6th placed Wanderers. With Western Sydney arguably the hottest team in the comp at the moment, it’ll be hard to catch them and sneak into the top six by finals end.
Brisbane have failed to get a result in their last three games afters draws with Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, but have the recent results against the New Zealand side, winning two and drawing one of their last three games. It’s also a damming stat for the Nix that in their 14 games in Brisbane, they have only managed to come away with maximum points in one game. I expect this one to go to form and Brisbane to win in a fairly high scoring match.
TIP: Brisbane to win and both teams to score - $3.20 at bet365
Melbourne Victory vs Adelaide United
The Victory got back to their winning ways last week with a dominant performance over the Central Coast Mariners at Bluetongue Stadium. They’ll get another relatively easy matchup this week when they host wooden spooners Adelaide United on Saturday night. Bersat Berisha found the back of the net twice against the Mariners which leaves his tally on 97 A-League goals, needing just 3 more to become the first ever player to reach 100. The play of off season recruits Marco Rojas and James Troisi has been instrumental in the Victory’s 2nd place on the table, and they’ll be a major reason why Melbourne will be a favourite to win it all this year.
Adelaide have had a major fall from grace in the 2016-17 season. After winning the Championship last year, they have been the cellar dwellers of the competition over the opening 21 weeks. With just 14 points over 20 games and a dismal -21 goal difference, I really can’t see a scenario where Adelaide win this game. They are winless in their last 9 games away from home, and I expect that streak to continue to 10 here.
TIP: Melbourne Victory -1 - $2.25 at Sportsbet
Perth Glory vs Western Sydney Wanderers (Saturday 10pm AEDT)
Perth and Western Sydney will round out the Saturday triple header in a late-night clash for us East coast fans. After a 5-0 drubbing of Adelaide United, the Glory backed it up with a hard fought 2-2 draw with Brisbane Last week and will be looking to solidify their spot inside the top six with a win here. They currently sit seven points clear of the Newcastle Jets in 7th place.
Western Sydney are one of the hottest teams in the comp at the moment. After their previous matchup that ended 0-0, they looked like the only team capable of beating Sydney and ended up getting the job done last week, handing their cross town rivals their first loss of the season in a 1-0 win. Their form in the Asian Champions league could be questioned, however, with the Wanderers being taught a lesson by Japanese team Urawa Reds in their opening group stage game. The Reds hammered home a 4-0 victory in Sydney, which could rattle the A-League side going into an away clash with Perth. I expect Perth to hold their home field advantage here.
TIP: Perth to win - $2.25 at TopBetta
Newcastle Jets vs Central Coast Mariners (Sunday 5pm AEDT)
Two teams desperately trying to claw back into finals contention will square off in the final game of Round 21 on Sunday. Both the Mariners and Jets are coming off disappointing losses last week in games that could have propelled them to within striking distance of the top six. The Jets have the wood over the Mariners in past meeting, going undefeated in the last six games with two wins and four draws.
Both teams have struggled to score throughout the season so far, and with so many draws between them in the past, I can easily see this one ending in another low scoring draw. I’m happy taking the Mariners with a goal head start and hoping that the draw fest between these two teams continues.
TIP: Double Chance (Mariners/Draw) - $2.10 at bet365
Take note: Any of the tips in this article are simply the author’s opinion, so bet at your own risk and always gamble responsibly. Also be sure to check out the Before You Bet Twitter Page for all our thoughts in the lead up to bets! Happy punting!
