CITY INSIDER: 2022 Grand Final - Saturday 28 May

CITY INSIDER

vs WESTERN UNITED SATURDAY 28 MAY - GRAND FINAL AAMI PARK

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MELBOURNE CITY v WESTERN UNITED

CITY INSIDER SATURDAY 28 MAY

CAPTAIN’S MESSAGE HERE WE GO, CITY FANS. ANOTHER CHANCE TO LIFT MORE SILVERWARE. IT DOESN’T GET MUCH BETTER THAN THAT. ONCE AGAIN, WE’VE MADE IT TO THE LAST DAY AND IT’S A DESERVED REWARD FOR EVERYTHING THE PLAYERS, COACHES, STAFF AND CLUB HAS PUT IN THIS SEASON. Your support was absolutely crucial a couple of weeks ago when we lifted the Premiers Plate, but that’s now a distant memory, at least for us players.

We’ve put in everything to get the opportunity to call ourselves back-to-back Champions, and I’m proud of the way the boys fought back against Adelaide after going down early in the second half of last week’s Semi Final.

It just goes to show the character of the playing group. We work hard for each other every day and through the work we’ve put in since day one of preseason, we fully deserve to be here today with the chance to do what no team has ever done before in this league.

It won’t be easy, and we know that. Nothing has been this season, and it hasn’t stopped us so far, so you can be guaranteed that we’ll leave it all out there tonight and do everything we can to ensure its another memorable night for you at AAMI Park.

Never underestimate the effect your support has on us either. I’ve said it before, but in these kind of do-ordie games where everything is on the line, you need to take every little advantage you can get out there on the pitch. For us, that’s you tonight. Whether it’s cheering, chanting or whatever else, make as much noise as you can and get right behind us.

No matter what happens on the pitch, we can’t thank you enough for your support throughout this season.

We know the last few years have been challenging times for everyone and we appreciate you coming out and getting behind us every week. We’ll do everything we can to ensure you leave tonight with a smile on your face. See you in the stands.

See you in the stands, C’mon City!

Scott Jamieson Melbourne City FC captain

Together We Move

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MELBOURNE CITY v WESTERN UNITED

CITY INSIDER SATURDAY 28 MAY

ALL MELBOURNE GRAND FINAL AS ANOTHER SEASON DRAWS TO ITS CLIMAX, WE WILL ONCE AGAIN BE THERE ON THE LAST DAY. CITY WILL PLAY OFF IN THE GRAND FINAL, THIS TIME AROUND TAKING ON WESTERN UNITED IN WHAT IS SET TO BE THE FIRST ALL-MELBOURNE DECIDER IN A-LEAGUES HISTORY. ‘History’ is probably the best word to sum up Saturday night too. No matter what the result, history will be created with Western vying for a Championship for the first time, while City seek to do what no A-Leagues team has done before.

A City win would see it crowned back-to-back Premiers and Champions, a fitting reward for what has been a dominant couple of seasons for Patrick Kisnorbo’s men.

The team won its way into Saturday’s Victorian showdown with a hard-fought Semi Final victory over Adelaide United.

Following a scoreless draw away

from home in the midweek leg, City were put on the backfoot after going down 1-0 but fought back through a Marco Tilio equaliser and an eventual Jamie Maclaren winner in extra time.

Western progressed to the decider led by Serbian striker Aleksander Prijovic, one of the most in-form players in the league, who found himself on the scoresheet twice while also assisting another in their Semi Final second leg win.

City conceded just once over 210 Semi Finals minutes, and the goal it did concede was a classy finish that not many defences in world football could’ve

stopped.

Up the other end of the pitch, the likes of Jamie Maclaren, Mathew Leckie and Andrew Nabbout look ready to fire on the big stage.

Maclaren has the extra motivation of missing last season’s decider due to hotel quarantine, and comes in hot having scored in four of City’s last six games, including the goal to send us to the Grand Final. Leckie comes in off a man of the match second leg performance, while Nabbout too had a strong game and provided a nice assist for Tilio’s equaliser.

A-LEAGUE MEN PREVIEW

DANGER PLAYER

SEASON STATS - WESTERN UNITED

ALEKSANDAR PRIJOVIC Serbian striker Aleksandar Prijovic’s late season form has made him the danger player ahead of the Grand Final with Western United’s number 99 proving to be a thorn in many side’s bushes this season.

After spending time getting up to speed with the A-League Men’s competition, Prijovic netted nine goals in the regular season and more importantly, three goals over the two Finals Series matches Western United have been a part of.

The tall, target man will be a handful for the likes of Curtis Good and Nuno Reis which may prove to be an important factor.

3

13

LEAGUE POSITION

GAMES WON

40

30

GOALS SCORED

GOALS CONCEDED

A-LEAGUE LADDER

LAST RESULT

LAST TIME WE MET

MELBOURNE CITY

2

WESTERN UNITED

2

ADELAIDE UNITED

1

MELBOURNE CITY

2

Isuzu UTE A-League 2021/22 Sunday 22 May, 2022 AAMI Park

VIDEO HIGLIGHTS

Isuzu UTE A-League 2021/22 Saturday 13 March, 2022 AAMI Park

VIDEO HIGLIGHTS

MATCH SQUADS

HEAD COACH: PATRICK KISNORBO

A-LEAGUE MEN

1. TOM GLOVER

2. SCOTT GALLOWAY

3. SCOTT JAMIESON

4. NUNO REIS

5. ROSTYN GRIFFITHS

7. MATT LECKIE

8. AIDEN O’NEILL

9. JAMIE MACLAREN

10. FLORIN BERENGUER

13. NATHANIEL ATKINSON

15. ANDREW NABBOUT

16. TARAS GOMULKA

17. STEFAN COLACOVSKI

18. CONNOR METCALFE

20.MANUEL PUCCIARELLI

22. CURTIS GOOD

23. MARCO TILIO

33. MATT SUTTON

34. JORDAN HALL

36. KERRIN STOKES

37. MAX CAPUTO

38. JORDAN BOS

42. AHMED TALEB

35. RAPHAEL BORGES RODRIGUES

39. ANTHONY LESIOTIS

1 37

JAMIE YOUNG RYAN SCOTT

4 5 6 12 13 17 19 44

LEO LACROIX DYLAN PIERIAS TOMOKI IMAI DALIBOR MARKOVIC IVAN VUJICA BEN GARUCCIO JOSH RISDON NIKOLAI TOPOR-STANLEY

10 16 21 23 25 27 29 88

STEVEN LUSTICA RENE KRHIN SEB PASQUALI ALESSANDRO DIAMANTI LUKE DUZEL JERRY SKOTADIS AYOM MAJOK NEIL KILKENNY

8 9 11 26 34 99

LACHLAN WALES DYLAN WENZEL-HALLS CONNOR PAIN NICOLAS MILANOVIC CHRISTIAN THEOHAROUS ALEKSANDAR PRIJOVIC

HEAD COACH: JOHN ALOISI

WESTERN UNITED

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MELBOURNE CITY v WESTERN UNITED

CITY INSIDER SATURDAY 28 MAY

MACLAREN: WE’VE EARNED IT HIS PART IN TWO SUCCESSIVE PREMIERS PLATE’S WITH CITY ONLY ADDS TO THAT FEELING OF TOTAL COMPLETION OF ALL THAT THE COMPETITION HAS TO OFFER, YET THERE IS ONE LEAGUE PRIZE THAT HAS ALLUDED THE 28-YEAR-OLD. That being the A-League Championship, notably missing out on last years Grand Final win due to hotel quarantine following national team duty.

He arrived a year too late to catch Brisbane Roar’s final Championship of its early2010s dynasty in 2014 and would have to wait until 2020 for his maiden Grand Final appearance which ended in defeat.

Of course, a new season under the leadership of new Head Coach Patrick Kisnorbo brought with it renewed fortunes, including an inaugural A-League Premiership and a highlyanticipated rematch against Sydney FC in the Grand Final.

Though City’s #9 was able to share in the celebrations of what was a historic night for the club, there undoubtedly remains a Championshipshaped hole in Maclaren’s heart as he continues to build

a case for being one of the A-League’s greats.

“Playing in a Grand Final is the biggest thing you can do in the A-League,” Maclaren said as he and his City teammates prepare to face Western United in the final game of another successful league season.

For that unfortunate Socceroo trio absent for City’s 2021 success, this weekend represents a worthy reward for their contributions to ensuring the team returns for a third consecutive Championship decider.

“You’ve worked so hard to reach the pinnacle, which is a Grand Final,” Maclaren said.

Whilst a Grand Final win would evidently bring Maclaren’s A-League career full-circle, it would carry additional significance to the #9 and his teammates for a different reason. In securing both the A-League Premiership and Championship for the second

year in a row, City would become the only team in the competition’s history to have achieved the monumental feat.

“It’s what we set out to do,” Maclaren said, “It’s our chance to stamp our authority as a football club.”

This weekend’s showpiece event also appeals to Maclaren for another reason.

“It’s an all-Melbourne Final,” he began, “Being a proud Melbourne boy, it’s nice to see two quality Melbourne sides there.”

In the previous matchups between City and United this season, the latter has proven its defensive rigidity – much to the frustration of City fans – shutting out 2021/22’s highestscoring outfit in a pair of 1-0 wins before finally relenting in an enthralling 2-2 draw.

“In the Grand Final, it’s just going to be all about taking our chances when they present themselves.”

MELBOURNE CITY v WSTERN UNITED

CITY INSIDER SATURDAY 28 MAY

FROM HEARTBREAK TO HOTEL TO PRIJOVIC WHILST HIS MELBOURNE CITY TEAMMATES LIFT THE 2021 A-LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY FOLLOWING ITS VICTORY OVER SYDNEY FC IN LAST SEASON’S GRAND FINAL, CURTIS GOOD WATCHED ON FROM THE CONFINES OF A HOTEL ROOM AFTER RETURNING FROM SOCCEROOS DUTY. Though he was later able to share in the post-match celebrations in a small way, passed around by his teammates who spoke ecstatically to him via FaceTime, Good still felt a very long way from what was taking place at AAMI Park that night.

“Being locked up is one thing, being locked up alone is another,” he said of the experience, “It was pretty stressful to be honest.”

The 29-year-old defender was certainly able to empathise with the emotions that those in the stands at AAMI must have been experiencing, going through the full compliment of emotional highs and lows that come with being a football fan over the course of 90 minutes.

“I probably felt like most of the fans felt,” he said, “It was definitely a lot more stressful than actually playing.”

It is fitting that Good has now experienced Grand Finals both as a fan and, one year earlier, as a player. The centreback was named in Erick

Mombaerts’ starting XI for the 2020 Championship decider, against Sydney FC in a fierce contest that required extra time to decide its outcome.

“I remember being extremely disappointed after it, it was quite upsetting,” Good said.

“Even though we were underdogs that year, we still felt like we should have won the game.”

Given that Good’s first Grand Final appearance came amidst the New South Wales COVID ‘bubble’ arrangement that enabled the 2019/20 season to be finished, before he missed the second entirely, the defender says he’s not quite sure how to compare this week’s preparations to the build-up for the 2020 decider.

“I assume this is how you normally prepare for a Grand Final!” he laughed.

It is, in a sense, ironic that Good will go from missing last year’s Championship decider to preparing to play a key role in this one. He’ll match up against

one of the league’s most in-form strikers – and one of Western United’s most influential players – Aleksandar Prijovic.

With the Serbian striker particularly coming into form late in the regular season (after our last meeting with the Green and Black), Good was asked whether this will factor into how he prepares for Saturday’s blockbuster.

“My preparation doesn’t really change,” he answered, “During the week we have a look at some individuals to see how to go about best defending them and we have to pay him respect, he’s been in great form and scored a lot of goals.

“It’s not about changing your game, it’s about just being aware and it’s going to be fine.”

“As you saw in the Adelaide game, the crowd helps us so much.

“It gives us the extra support to keep the boys going and it makes a big difference.”

MELBOURNE CITY v WESTERN UNITED

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CITY INSIDER SATURDAY 28 MAY

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meet the team NAME: Marco Tilio AGE: 20 POSITION: Forward NATIONALITY: Australian PREVIOUS CLUB: Sydney FC JUNIOR CLUB: APIA Leichhardt & Sydney Olympic FAVOURITE FOOD: Sushi FAVOURITE TV SHOW: Power

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