Melbourne City continued their preparations for the FFA Cup Quarter Finals on Wednesday as they defeated Adelaide United 2-0 at CFA Melbourne on Wednesday.
A first half blitz from the hosts secured the result as Lachie Wales and Dario Vidosic found the back on the net in the space of four minutes to secure the result.
After taking on the Reds a fortnight ago in Adelaide, City knew what to expect from their opponent, starting more cautiously against Marco Kurz side.
The first chance of the match fell to Adelaide as Craig Goodwin looked dangerous in his new midfield role. The midfielder found space on the edge of the area however the quick City defence got close enough to pressure his effort, seeing his shot fall straight to Eugene Galekovic.
City took control of the contest and made the most of their advantage, finding the back of the net after 12 minutes. A brilliant combination on the left involving Scott Jamieson found the feet of Bruno Fornaroli as the striker pivoted and looked forward towards goal. A darting run from Wales through the Adelaide defence was rewarded by the Uruguayan as he slotted his one-on-one effort past Paul Izzo.
City doubled their lead four minutes later as a wonderful turn from Luke Brattan in the middle of the park opened the door for the opportunity. His through ball on the right to speedster Michael O’Halloran made room for the Scotsman to drive down the wing as his cutback to the run of Vidosic saw the experienced forward make no mistake to double City’s lead.
Adelaide were looking for answers and it seemed to have come through the unlikely source of Michael Jakobsen as his marauding run resulted in a cutback to Ben Halloran as he flicked his effort over the bar. City finished the half stronger however, forcing Izzo into two smothering saves off the boots of O’Halloran and Riley McGree late in the first stanza.
A change in formation by the Reds tightened things up in the second half as the hosts found it more difficult to break down the Adelaide defence.
Mark Birighitti made his debut for the Club after half time and was called into action after 56 minutes. A turnover from Bart Schenkeveld opened the door for Adelaide’s attack to counter as Goodwin’s fierce effort struck the keeper’s near post.
The keeper was in the thick of the action once again as a second phase cross from Vince Lia sailed towards the back post as Birighitti palmed his effort away from goal.
As the sun set at CFA Melbourne, so too did the chances in the match and it was Adelaide who would have the last opportunity after 73 minutes. A cleared ball into the path of Goodwin saw the attacker chest his effort down and volley towards goal, rocketing off the outside of the post and away from danger.
City coasted through the remaining of the contest as they continued their preparations for Wednesday’s FFA Cup Quarter Final against Western Sydney.
