Honours were even in the 19th edition of the Melbourne Derby as Melbourne City FC and Melbourne Victory played out a pulsating 2-2 draw at AAMI Park on Saturday night. We take a look at some of the key Quotes and Notes to come out of the Round 19 clash.
Quotes
Melbourne City FC Head Coach John van’t Schip
Thoughts on Gui Finkler’s controversial free-kick…
”I think like everybody’s take on it, that was a goal, but it was not allowed. In football, it happens. In some countries they have the goal-line technology in place, then it would have been a goal. But here it’s the eye of the ref and the linesman and that’s always a hard one.”
”For us it was lucky that they didn’t see it, but on the other hand I think the foul that they got that free kick rewarded wasn’t a foul, so maybe it was a good outcome.”
On City’s robust and energetic performance…
“I like the spirit of the team – that was nothing I could say anything about. I think the way that we played is something we can talk more about. We need to keep the ball longer and try to dictate the game and control the game better; that is certainly something we will try to improve.”
“But the spirit was there; the fighting spirit and maybe it resulted in a few yellow cards, but maybe the referee was very quick on giving them as well.”
On the 2-2 result…
“If you look neutral and the goal that they maybe didn’t get, then we are very happy of course with this point. Sometimes it’s against, sometimes it’s in front of you and with 10 men we were happy to keep it at 2-2 in the end.”
On Bruno Fornaroli’s wonderful opener…
“He’s full of confidence. He’s enjoying his game, he’s working hard and he’s giving everything for the team and the team is giving everything to him as well. The boys also give something back to him.”
“The goal he made, you can see how happy everybody is and he himself as well. It was a class goal and the whole set up was a good counter-attack with Anthony (Caceres) and Aaron (Mooy) and the final chip with Bruno. We are very happy with him and he continues working hard and giving everything he has.”
On Alex Wilkinson’s debut…
“Looking at the first half he was very solid. Important in his coaching and every time he was in the right position. He made a very good impression. We knew he wouldn’t last 90 minutes and started cramping quite quickly after half-time so we had to take him off.”
“I’m very happy with his first performance and hopefully now another week ahead he can build up and start getting more into playing longer.”
On the impact of the new signings…
“It’s a second phase of this last part of the season where we are building again on the team with three or four new players. I think Osama (Malik) did very well today, especially on his fitness level. Nicky Fitzgerald looked very good and was dangerous first half. Anthony (Caceres) is normally the player that can play 90 minutes from the start, unfortunately he got a red card.”
Melbourne Victory coach Kevin Muscat
Thoughts on Finkler’s controversial free-kick…
”Everyone has seen it. We have seen referees before and asked questions. Regardless of whether it was in or not, I am staggered to just comprehend at that moment where he is looking because if he says he is watching the ball and he is 18 yards away and he can’t see it go over the line then we have got bigger issues.”
”If we needed goal-line technology to see that one tonight we might as well get a robot. That was clear and obvious to see, we shouldn’t have had to go upstairs for it.”
Notes
- Bruno Fornaroli extended his lead at the top of the Golden Boot standings with a sensational double against the Victory. The Uruguayan has now scored 17 goals for the season, three ahead of Melbourne Victory striker Besart Berisha in second place.
- Aaron Mooy is solidifying his reputation as the assist king of the Hyundai A-League, taking his season tally to a whopping 16 after setting up both of Bruno Fornaroli’s first-half goals.
- Socceroos defender Alex Wilkinson put in an assured display in the heart of defence during his Melbourne City debut, playing for the first time at AAMI Park since joining from Korean club Jeonbuk Motors.
- Midfielder Nick Fitzgerald made his first ever start for the Club on the right side of midfield against Victory, with his two previous appearances against Wellington Phoenix and Newcastle Jets coming from the substitutes bench.
- John van’t Schip’s side are now undefeated in the last four Melbourne Derbies played at AAMI Park, winning all three previous iterations of the fixture prior to Saturday night’s 2-2 draw.
