Melbourne Victory Held to a Draw

In an entertaining 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon, Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United could not be separated by two late goals. Following the team’s victory in the derby against Melbourne City last week, head Coach Tony Popovic kept the same lineup for the Pride Cup game. The match got to a cagey start as both teams settled into their positions, and the competition heated up. When Chris Ikonomidis shot from outside the box in the 11th minute, victory had its first chance, but Adelaide United goalkeeper Joe Gauci saved well.

The home team had a good few minutes after that as they gradually increased their pressure on the Reds’ defense, but they didn’t score. The first half remained tightly contested throughout, with Tony Popovic’s team appearing more likely to achieve. Ben Folami made a fantastic run that led to a cross that Bruno Fornaroli received in the box, but the striker could not get the ball over the line.

Ten minutes later, Chris Ikonomidis’s close-range shot was saved by Joe Gauci at full stretch, and he came very close again. However, victory’s positive first half was marred by the injury that forced Jake Brimmer off the field. With the score still at 0-0, Nishan Velupillay took his place just minutes before the halftime break. The second half immediately displayed greater intensity as victory attempted to build on their strong start to the game.

Since his return, Paul Izzo has continued to impress, making an acrobatic save just over 10 minutes into the second half to prevent a shot from going into the top corner. As the home team continued to move closer to scoring, Jason Geria’s goal on the hour hit the crossbar. As a result of an even contest, this result was fair.