Melbourne City fought back from a goal down to earn a point in the first Melbourne Derby of the season, playing out a 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory at a rain-soaked AAMI Park on Saturday night.
After a difficult opening half saw Victory take an early lead, Aurelio Vidmar’s side responded strongly after the break, with Andrew Nabbout finding the equaliser following some excellent work from Club debutant Emiliano Marcondes.
Despite both teams pushing for a winner, neither could find a decisive breakthrough, with City taking a point from a fiercely contested Derby.
Team News
Vidmar opted for an unchanged starting XI from last weekend’s season opener in Auckland, but there were some notable changes among the substitutes.
Danish playmaker Emiliano Marcondes and Costa Rican defender Julio Cascante were both included for the first time, putting the international duo in contention for their competitive City debuts.
There was some unfortunate news though, with Max Caputo missing the clash due to hamstring tightness.
Starting XI: 1. Macklin FREKE (GK), 13. Nathaniel ATKINSON, 4. Liam BONETIG, 2. Harrison DELBRIDGE, 16. Aziz BEHICH, 14. Besian KUTLESHI, 24. Kavian RAHMANI, 19. Quinn MACNICOL, 23. Medin MEMETI, 11. Awer MABIL, 15. Andrew NABBOUT.
Substitutes: 40. James NIEUWENHUIZEN (GK), 7. Mathew LECKIE, 10. Emiliano MARCONDES, 18. Julio CASCANTE, 22. Peter ANTONIOU, 39. Roland BALLAH, 77. Takeshi KANAMORI.
What happened?
It was a relatively even opening to the Derby, but City found ourselves behind early when Keegan Jelacic opened the scoring for Victory in the seventh minute.
The hosts settled into the contest more quickly after taking the lead, with City struggling to find our rhythm in the wet conditions.
Despite a difficult opening period, there were signs of promise as the half progressed, particularly through Awer Mabil.
The Socceroo came agonisingly close to bringing City level in the 28th minute after some clever work from Kavian Rahmani in the build-up, but his effort flashed inches wide of the upright.
Mabil was involved again nine minutes later, this time combining with Quinn MacNicol and Andrew Nabbout before sending another effort narrowly over the crossbar.
While Victory had enjoyed the better of the opening 45 minutes, City had created enough to suggest there was still plenty to play for heading into the break.
And Vidmar wasted little time making a change.
Marcondes was introduced for Besian Kutleshi at half-time, marking his competitive City debut as we looked to turn the game around.
It was Victory who threatened first after the restart, though, with Macklin Freke producing two important saves in quick succession.
The City goalkeeper first denied Guillermo May’s header in the 49th minute before reacting brilliantly to keep out Jason Davidson’s point-blank effort from the resulting corner.
Those interventions would prove crucial, with City finding an equaliser just minutes later.
Marcondes was at the heart of a beautifully worked move in the 53rd minute, cleverly flicking the ball into the penalty area for Medin Memeti.
The youngster showed impressive strength to hold off his defender and return possession to the Dane, who then picked out Nabbout with a perfectly weighted cutback.
From there, our number 15 made no mistake, tapping home from close range to bring City level at 1-1.
It was an excellent team goal and a memorable first contribution from Marcondes, whose introduction gave City an immediate lift.
The contest opened up following the equaliser, with both sides enjoying promising moments as they searched for a second.
Vidmar turned to his bench again in the 62nd minute, introducing Mathew Leckie and Takeshi Kanamori, before Cascante entered the action eight minutes later for his own City debut.
With Leckie providing plenty of energy and Marcondes continuing to impress in midfield, City began to enjoy more of the contest.
Harrison Delbridge almost put us ahead in the 74th minute, rising to meet a delivery into the box, only to see his header cleared off the line.
As the game entered its closing stages, City looked increasingly dangerous, while Cascante provided an assured presence at the back.
There was still work to do defensively, with Victory applying late pressure through a series of corners during five minutes of stoppage time.
City stood firm to see out the contest, securing a well-earned point after a much-improved second-half performance.
What’s next?
We’re back at AAMI Park next Saturday night for our official home opener against Sydney FC!
With Halloween falling on matchday, it’s shaping up to be a big night as City looks to build on Saturday’s Derby performance and secure our first win of the new campaign.
