Melbourne City has played out a tight 0-0 stalemate with Adelaide United on Tuesday afternoon behind closed doors at Coopers Stadium as the sides continue their preparations for the FFA Cup Round of 16 next week.
It was an opening where both sides felt each other out as the opening 20 minutes failed to create a clear-cut opportunity. The teams looked to attack down the left with Lachlan Wales for City and Ryan Kitto for Adelaide finding the most joy for their respective sides.
The Reds forced the first save of the match as Eugene Galekovic sprung into action. Like the early stages, the left was where Adelaide found their outlet to goal, with a cutback seeing Apostolos Stamatelopoulos flicking his effort on goal, forcing Galekovic into a sharp stop at his near post.
Vidosic found City’s first chance on goal after 35 minutes as the midfielder was given space to drive outside of the area. His shot was tame, falling straight into the hands of Paul Izzo.
As the half continued, the Reds looked the more likely to score with Craig Goodwin coming closest after 38 minutes. A free kick won by Ryan Kitto on the edge of the area saw the new signing step up to the set piece as his curling effort rattled the crossbar.
City kept the ball well however a turnover in the middle of the park opened the door for the Reds once again. Kitto’s cross to the back post found Goodwin free as his header forced a fine save from Galekovic. His parry fell to the feet of Vince Lia who could only guide the effort wide of the post.
The second half saw two changes as Bouzanis entered the match between the sticks while O’Halloran replaced Wales in the final third.
The sides traded blows that lacked any significant punch as a string of set pieces and transitions forward resulted in neither side troubling either keeper.
City looked the most dangerous in the half after 73 minutes as McGree found himself with space on the corner of the area. His curling left-foot shot failed to dip in time as his effort flew over the bar. The Reds looked most likely to break the deadlock in the latter stages however the sides settled for a scoreless draw in a contest where both sides were still in the developing stages of pre-season.
Warren Joyce’s side will now prepare for next Wednesday’s FFA Cup Round of 32 clash with Newcastle at AAMI Park, kick-off 7.30pm.
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Melbourne City FC Starting XI: Galekovic, Atkinson Schenkeveld, Delbridge, Jamieson, Malik, Brattan, Vidosic, McGree, Wales, Fornaroli
Subs: Bouzanis, O’Halloran, J.Cavallo, Ahmed, Portelli
