Melbourne City has cruised through to the AFC Women’s Champions League knockout stages, securing a 3-0 win over College of Asian Scholars in Bangkok on Wednesday night.
A second consecutive win means City secures a Quarter Final back on home soil in March 2025, with goals coming from Mariana Speckmaier, Tyla-Jay Vlajnic and Lourdes Bosch.
Team News
Following a strong performance on Matchday 1, Head Coach Michael Matricciani stuck with an unchanged line-up.
Captain Rebekah Stott once again led the team out, Wednesday night’s fixture marking her 99th in a City shirt.
Starting XI: 24. Malena MIERES (GK), 22. Bryleeh HENRY, 8. Alexia APOSTOLAKIS, 13. Rebekah STOTT (C), 16. Karly ROESTBAKKEN, 18. Leah DAVIDSON, 14. Laura HUGHES, 17. Mariana SPECKMAIER, 27. Tyla-Jay VLAJNIC, 12. Shelby McMAHON, 10. Rhianna POLLICINA.
Substitutes: 23. Melissa BARBIERI (GK), 30. Anastasia KYRIACOU (GK), 5. Taylor OTTO, 6. Leticia McKENNA, 11. Emilia MURRAY, 15. Kiera MEYERS, 19. Lourdes BOSCH, 20. Caitlin KARIC, 21. Isabella ACCARDO, 31. Carina ROSSI.
What happened?
It was clear from the outset that College of Asian Scholars would be pressing a lot harder than what City encountered on Matchday 1.
This also meant there was more space through the middle of the pitch, which City regularly looked to exploit as the first half wore on.
Scholars make a nice forward move on the 10-minute mark, momentarily catching City out on transition, but Alexia Apostolakis recovered well to block the danger out for a corner.
Other than this, the first 45 was all City with Matricciani’s team holding 79% of the possession.
After recycling the ball around the box a few times in the 15th minute, Laura Hughes took matters into her own hands and unleashed a powerful strike from distance – but saw her attempt well-saved.
The following moment would prove crucial as Rhianna Pollicina stepped up to take our first corner of the night.
A well-placed cross dropped perfectly into Mariana Speckmaier’s path, the Venezuelan international finding the back of the net with her header to score her second goal in as many City games.
In a similar pattern to Matchday 1, our dominance of the ball was almost rewarded just before the break.
Tyla-Jay Vlajnic unleased a blistering shot which Yada Sengyong did brilliantly to keep out, although Shelby McMahon was on the spot for the follow-up to tap home what looked to be a second City goal.
The linesperson was quick to flag for offside though, replays later showing it to be an extremely tight call with McMahon perhaps a touch unlucky.
It would be a sign of things to come for City, as there was nothing the keeper could do to deny Vlajnic five minutes after half time.
Laura Hughes kickstarted the move by finding Bryleeh Henry in space on the right-hand side, the full-back then taking a couple of touches and sliding it into the box for Speckmaier.
Her first touch looked to be a little heavy and opened the door for the Sengyong to gobble it up, but not giving up on the play, Speckmaier was able to be first to it and poke it through to a waiting Vlajnic – two metres away from an open net.
Far from content with a two-goal lead, City continued to dominate possession and the game as a whole.
Lourdes Bosch was next to join the party – scoring her first professional goal just two minutes after entering the pitch for her second City appearance.
The Mexican-American received from Hughes in midfield and turned to face forward, quickly playing Pollicina in behind and continuing her run. A couple of touches from Pollicina later, the ball was back in Bosch’s path for a simple tap-in to make it 3-0.
With a home Quarter Final all but secured, Matricciani turned to the bench once again, introducing Emilia Murray, Leticia McKenna, Kiera Meyers and Isabella Accardo for the final stages.
What’s next?
Although there may technically be nothing to play for on Matchday 3 for City, it’ll prove to be a vital hitout ahead of the A-League Women’s season back home.
We’ll return to the pitch on Saturday (4pm local, 8pm AEDT) to wrap up the Group Stage against Filipino Champions, Kaya-Iloilo.
