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Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory
When: Saturday, April 17 – 17:10 AEST
Where: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium (AAMI Park) in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Weather: Partly cloudy, 14°C
A clash between the local foes in Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory will be one of the most interesting duels of Match Week 17 in the Australian A-League. The two have already met once in 2021 when Melbourne City secured a historic 6-0 victory.
That loss marked the worst defeat for Melbourne Victory in the club’s history. They would love to get their revenge this weekend, but the trouble is that the Victory just don’t seem to have the manpower to achieve such a feat.
The fact that they’re at the very bottom of the A-League table tells everything about their chances in the Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory game.
City’s Chance to Get to Climb to the Summit of A-League
We’re entering the 17th week of the 2021 A-League, but the City vs Victory game is going to be the 16th match for these two teams this season. Other teams have played at least one game more than them.
Melbourne City are just two points behind Central Coast Mariners who are at the top of the table. A win over Malborne Victory could help Melbourne City leapfrog the Mariners.
Knowing how well the City have been playing this season, it’s not crazy to say that they deserve to be on the top. Their current score is 9-1-5 (W-D-L), with a total scoreline of 31-18.
No other team has scored as many goals this season, with Adelaide United being the closest with 29 goals (plus, this team has played one game more than Melbourne City).
The man most responsible for Melbourne City’s scoring prowess is Jamie Maclaren. Born and raised in Melbourne, the 27-year-old forward is currently the leading scorer in A-League with 14 goals to his name.
The most impressive fact about Maclaren’s performances in 2021 is that he’s scored in eight of the previous nine games.
Melbourne Victory Struggling to Patch Their Leaky Defense
Melbourne Victory are coming off a 2-1 win over Newcastle Jets in the previous round, which was their only third win of the season. Getting three points in that game is certainly a good thing, but the fact is that they played against one of the worst teams in the Australian top-flight.
The Jets might be the only team in the A-League that deserves to sit lower than Melbourne Victory. They’re the worst team in the league scoring-wise, with only 14 goals in 17 games.
The fact that Melbourne Victory conceded a goal against the least productive team in A-League needs to worry them. In fact, their shaky defense seems to be the #1 reason why the Victory have been underperforming this season.
Having allowed 35 goals in 15 games, Melbourne Victory hold, by far, the worst defensive record in the league.
Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory Betting Picks
Anything but a win for the City in the Melbourne Derby would be a huge surprise. Not only are Melbourne City one of the best teams in Australia, but their city rivals are among the worst teams in the league.
In the previous Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory game, we saw a 6-0 win for the City. Even though we backed Victory last week against the Jets to earn a juicy payout at 4.72, we aren’t as confident in them this time out. We wouldn’t be surprised if this bout plays out similarly to the last one.
Prediction: Melbourne City -1.50 AH – 1.80 Pinnacle
