Melbourne City continued our strong run of form with another dominant display at AAMI Park, securing a 2-0 victory over Macarthur on Friday night.
A brace from Max Caputo, his first goals of the season, ensured all three points as City extended our unbeaten streak to four matches and climbed to second on the A-League Men’s table.
Team News
Aurelio Vidmar made just one change to the starting XI from last week’s win, with Mathew Leckie returning to midfield in place of Zane Schreiber.
The squad received a further boost on the bench, as both Yonatan Cohen and Steven Ugarkovic were passed fit to return from injury.
Starting XI: 33. Patrick BEACH (GK), 13. Nathaniel ATKINSON, 22. Germán FERREYRA, 26. Samuel SOUPRAYEN, 16. Aziz BEHICH (C), 27. Kai TREWIN, 7. Mathew LECKIE, 30. Andreas KUEN, 23. Marco TILIO, 47. Kavian RAHMANI, 17. Max CAPUTO.
Substitutes: 40. James NIEUWENHUIZEN (GK), 2. Callum TALBOT, 6. Steven UGARKOVIC, 10. Yonatan COHEN, 38. Harry POLITIDIS, 41. Lawrence WONG, 50. Mikey GHOSSAINI.
What happened?
City controlled proceedings from the outset, dictating possession and setting the tempo through the midfield duo of Mathew Leckie and Kai Trewin.
At the back, Germán Ferreyra was rock-solid, while 18-year-old winger Kavian Rahmani continued to impress in attack, proving to be City’s most dangerous outlet in the first half.
It was Rahmani who played a key role in breaking the deadlock in the 33rd minute. Captain Aziz Behich delivered a pinpoint long ball down the left wing, where Rahmani sprinted to the byline and squared a clever pass to Caputo.
The young striker produced a stunning finish from an extremely tight angle, slotting the ball across Filip Kurto and into the side netting to open the scoring.
Macarthur almost responded immediately through former City winger Marin Jakolis, but Patrick Beach reacted superbly to make a reflex save from close range—though the effort was ultimately ruled offside.
City had another golden opportunity just before half-time when another Behich long ball sent Caputo through on goal, but this time, his shot was straight at Kurto.
The second half followed a similar pattern, with City continuing to dominate.
Leckie thought he had doubled the lead in the 62nd minute after heading home from a well-worked set piece, but the referee quickly disallowed the goal for a foul as the City veteran rose to meet the ball.
Our second goal did eventually come in the 74th minute following a lengthy VAR review. A clear handball in the box on a Trewin shot led the referee to award a penalty, and Caputo made no mistake from the spot, sending Kurto the wrong way to seal his brace.
Cohen and Ugarkovic made their long-awaited returns from injury in the 75th minute, while Beach produced a spectacular acrobatic save in the 78th minute to preserve his ninth clean sheet of the season—an equal league record.
What’s next?
With a short turnaround ahead, attention now turns to Wednesday night’s midweek clash at AAMI Park, where City will host Newcastle Jets in a crucial fixture before the international break.
