Valeri loving Victory competition
The international break may have halted Melbourne Victory's momentum, but skipper Carl Valeri says the team are buzzing going into the first Big Blue clash of the season against Sydney FC.
The defending champions will look to make it three wins in a row in Sunday's showdown, a fortnight after they blew away Central Coast.
The Big Blues are fantastic games. I love playing in them.
Carl Valeri
They bagged three goals in the final 15 minutes of the first half against the Mariners, moving to within two points of this weekend's opponents.
Defeats in the opening two rounds came as something of a shock to the system for Victory, but they're now close to being able to field their first-choice side.
Valeri missed those first two matches, at home to Melbourne City and Perth Glory, before getting the nod after an injury to Spanish import Raul Baena.
The 34-year-old faces a challenge for his spot after Baena recovered his fitness, and coach Kevin Muscat could opt to field the Spaniard, along with fellow internationals Ola Toivonen and Keisuke Honda.
Valeri expects Toivonen to start against Sydney FC, but says the squad's so full of talent it's a tough decision for Muscat.
"Everything's up in the air, there's a lot of healthy competition and its great," he said. "There's so many battles in positions.
"The Big Blues are fantastic games. I love playing in them, we all do. Two big clubs on a big occasion with fairly new teams so it's an exciting Big Blue."
Victory are 14/5 to win their next game against Sydney FC, who are 19/20, with the draw 13/5.
View all Soccer betting
The international break may have halted Melbourne Victory's momentum, but skipper Carl Valeri says the team are buzzing going into the first Big Blue clash of the season against Sydney FC.
The defending champions will look to make it three wins in a row in Sunday's showdown, a fortnight after they blew away Central Coast.
The Big Blues are fantastic games. I love playing in them.
Carl Valeri
They bagged three goals in the final 15 minutes of the first half against the Mariners, moving to within two points of this weekend's opponents.
Defeats in the opening two rounds came as something of a shock to the system for Victory, but they're now close to being able to field their first-choice side.
Valeri missed those first two matches, at home to Melbourne City and Perth Glory, before getting the nod after an injury to Spanish import Raul Baena.
The 34-year-old faces a challenge for his spot after Baena recovered his fitness, and coach Kevin Muscat could opt to field the Spaniard, along with fellow internationals Ola Toivonen and Keisuke Honda.
Valeri expects Toivonen to start against Sydney FC, but says the squad's so full of talent it's a tough decision for Muscat.
"Everything's up in the air, there's a lot of healthy competition and its great," he said. "There's so many battles in positions.
"The Big Blues are fantastic games. I love playing in them, we all do. Two big clubs on a big occasion with fairly new teams so it's an exciting Big Blue."
Victory are 14/5 to win their next game against Sydney FC, who are 19/20, with the draw 13/5.
View all Soccer betting
Source: bet365.com
Comments
This article has 0 comment(s) , give your comment