Great recent history for Maclaren against the Wanderers
City’s talismanic striker has had a great deal of success against Western Sydney since arriving at the club in January 2019.
He’s only played against the Wanderers three times for City, once in the FFA Cup and twice in the 2019/20 A-League season, but has managed to record four goals and an assist in those fixtures.
Macca is 🔥🔥🔥
📹 @FOXFOOTBALL pic.twitter.com/JKvl2owpz5
— Melbourne City FC (@MelbourneCity) September 18, 2019
Maclaren’s inclusion to the squad has also seen City go undefeated against the Wanderers in that same three-game stretch, winning twice and drawing once.
A high-scoring affair in recent times
The head-to-head record between these two sides has seen some pretty impressive scorelines recently, with 20 goals netted in the previous five clashes.
This far exceeds the average goals-per-game in A-League matches this campaign (2.97), largely bolstered by City’s wins in blockbuster 2-3 and 4-3 clashes in the 2019/20 and 2018/19 seasons respectively.
Both teams can also claim a 3-0 victory in the same five-match period, with the other result being the 1-1 draw we saw towards the end of last season.
More of the same from our deadly front three
City appeared a different team on Tuesday night after the return of Andrew Nabbout to the line-up.
How good was it to have @andrewnabbout back out there last night?! 😍#CmonCity pic.twitter.com/jBgTrCr5V0
— Melbourne City FC (@MelbourneCity) February 24, 2021
Having been out of action since Round 1 due to a hamstring injury, the return of the Socceroo winger reinvigorated the team and brought out the best in the squad.
Maclaren was the benifiecery, scoring twice including one with the assist provided by Nabbout.
These two, along with Craig Noone down the left wing caused problems for the Sydney defence and will be out do more of the same when we take on the Wanderers.
Backing up an exciting offensive performance
After playing some of their most exhilarating attacking football of the year against Sydney FC, the boys will now be looking to back that kind of performance up with another strong showing against the Wanderers on Tuesday.
Macca gets the goal but what about the ball from Metcalfe and then the twinkle toes from Nabbout! 🤯🤩
📽 @FOXFOOTBALL#CmonCity #MCYvSYD #ALeague pic.twitter.com/nUUQK6NhjK
— Melbourne City FC (@MelbourneCity) February 23, 2021
City dominated their Sky Blue opponents earlier this week, recording a massive 20 shots against the reigning A-League champions.
The team also passed the eye test with flying colours, leveraging its relentless press to force turnovers and coordinate enthralling counterattacks to make for a visually-appealing brand of football.
Following such a captivating performance in the Grand Final rematch, City fans will be eagerly awaiting more of the same on Tuesday.
A chance to rise back up the table
A disappointing start to the campaign saw City fall swiftly down the A-League ladder following consecutive losses to Perth, Central Coast and Newcastle.
However, Tuesday night’s 3-2 win over Sydney FC was crucial in that it broke the fall and now allows the team to focus on stringing together some positive results and rising back up the table again.
Miss last night's game or just want to re-live the win? 😏
📺 Catch up on all of the highlights of what was an action-packed Grand Final re-match! #CmonCity pic.twitter.com/rEdBieo808
— Melbourne City FC (@MelbourneCity) February 23, 2021
Whilst we’re still only in the early stages of the season, it’s as vital as ever to be keeping in touch with the teams at the top if we’re to fulfil our ambitions for the season, so the Wanderers matchup looms as another significant challenge on the road ahead.
