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Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United
When: Sunday, April 25 – 16:00 AEST
Where: WIN Stadium in Wollongong, Australia
Weather: Sunny, 17°C
Last time out, Adelaide and Wellington Phoenix produced an exciting match which ended in a 1-1 draw. Phoenix emerged as a more potent team that day, but blew their opportunity with a missed penalty.
Can the nix improve upon that and walk away with all three points on Sunday, or will Adelaide secure crucial points and claw their way into the top-two?
Wellington Phoenix Undefeated in Their Last Three
After a shaky start of the season, the Nix found their stride. The hosts enter this match without a single loss in their last three.
Looking back, Wellington Phoenix beat Western United (3-2), Perth Glory (3-1) and played a 1-1 draw in the rematch with Western United on Thursday.
With those results, Wellington Phoenix now sits ninth in A-League with a 6-4-8 record and 22 points. It’s far from an optimal position to be in, but the Nix can be happy with their recent performances.
Much of Wellington Phoenix’s success this season is due to the performances of their forward David Ball. The 31-year-old has scored four goals this season and has 24 shot assists throughout 16 appearances.
When we talk about goals, we also can’t forget to mention Ulises Davila. The latter has scored seven in 18 appearances as Wellington’s top scorer of the season.
Adelaide United Shaky Form
Adelaide United enter this match with a 9-3-5 record and 30 points, which is good for a third-place in the league. Although a solid overall record, Adelaide United haven’t looked too sharp of late.
Carl Veart’s men are 2-2-1 in their last five. That run includes two wins against Sydney FC (1-0) and Macarthur FC (3-0), two draws against WS Wanderers (1-1) and Sydney FC (2-2), as well as one defeat against Central Coast Mariners (1-2).
In that stretch, Adelaide scored eight goals, but also conceded six, suggesting they play fairly loose. And it’s not like that’s something new.
Adelaide have conceded at least one goal in 89% of their games, at least two in 67%, and have kept a clean sheet in only 11% of their fixtures this season.
With 27 goals conceded in 17 games, Adelaide average 1.59 goals per game. This is one of the worst marks in the league – behind only WS Wanderers (1.63), Perth Glory (2.0), and Melbourne Victory (3.28).
On a more positive note, they have scored 31 goals so far (1.82), which is one of the highest numbers in the A-League. Adelaide have scored at least once in 78% and failed to do so in 22% of their fixtures.
Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United Betting Picks
Wellington Phoenix and Adelaide United last met in July at Bankwest Stadium. Kristian Fardal Opseth opened the match with a goal for Adelaide in 60′, with Jaushua Sotirio responding only five minutes later to level the score at 1-1.
Wellington Phoenix even got themselves in a position to win the match, however, Davilla missed the 86′ minute penalty and dropped two points.
It was a great night of football, with Wellington shooting 4/17 on target, and even hit the woodwork once. Adelaide went 3/13 on target and were overall far less convincing in their attempts.
With the Nix only four points short of reaching the top-six and Adelaide one-off catching up with the Mariners in second, this match will be extremely important for both sides.
Given the form these teams have been showing of late, we are leaning more towards Wellington to walk away with all three points. They’re 3-2-5 at home, where they’ve only lost to Macarthur and City, whereas Adelaide are 3-2-4 on the road without a win in their last two.
Prediction: Wellington Phoenix +0.00 AH
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