REDS REVIEW is a chance for United fans to write the match report from the weekends match. The best report will be posted on the website each week. This weeks winner is Matthew Harbinson with his report on Saturday’s 3 nil win over Sydney – ‘The Reds Revenge’
A fired up Adelaide United punished Sydney FC with a 3-nil win at Allianz Stadium on Saturday night.
With the memory of the recent draw at a sold-out Coopers Stadium in Adelaide, United were determined to prove themselves the better side; in a continuing tussle for a place in the A-League Finals.
A disciplined performance saw United passing the ball with speed and accuracy, completing 419 accurate passes, to Sydney-s 286. Another note-worthy statistic was the Offside count, 6-1 in the Reds favour. The concerted, notable effort to keep the ball in play was another factor in United-s win – their skill on the ball illustrating hours of training and practice.
Both teams began the game with the intention of scoring, United having their first crack in the second minute, and Del Piero hitting the cross-bar around the 10th minute. This end-to-end style of play continued until a beautiful lobbed pass crossed the field from defence to Ferreira-s feet. The fan-favourite sprinted into the box, fooled the defender and passed to Djite, who struck the ball with perfect timing, throwing off goalkeeper, Vedran Janjetovic, and putting the ball into the back of the net in the 16th minute – to the elation of his team-mates.
Play continued from one end to the other with several shots on goal, the closest being a shot by United-s Elrich in the 21st minute, which slowly curved past the goalkeeper, but was struck out of mid-air on the goal line by the accurate foot of Gameiro. This was immediately followed by a strike from Del Piero which was saved by the left glove of Eugene Galekovic, United-s Number #1.
The string of un-successful shots was broken in the 26th minute, by a United defence resolute in creating and recognising opportunities. Retaining the ball after another impressive display of defence, a terrific pass from Zullo found the feet of Ferreira just past the centre line. Charging along the Western side of the field, Ferreira outwitted the Sydney defenders, slotting an angled shot past a visibly exhausted Janjetovic. The goal was met with silence and a look from Farina as if the blue-sky was caving in.
Efforts from Despotovic, Gameiro and Del Piero created scoring opportunities for Sydney FC before half-time, but no goals resulted.
Both teams having had 5 shots on goal, and United ahead 2-nil, the teams entered the second half. A controversial yellow card given to Elrich only centimetres from the penalty box at the 59th minute, as he collided with Despotovic whilst going for the ball. The shot was taken by Del Piero, who missed his third shot from a foul, his frustration abundantly clear.
This was followed by an ongoing possession struggle in the centre of the field; whilst this can at times be infuriating for fans of the game, the skills on show were thoroughly entertaining. Malik, Boogard and Carrusca went after the ball like it contained tickets to the World Cup Final, skilfully spinning, sliding and intercepting the ball at every opportunity. This allowed for three Adelaide substitutions within 12 minutes, with Zullo, Ferreira and Djite being replaced with Cirio, Jeronimo and Marrone respectively.
The fresh attack didn’t waste any of their limited time, with a 79th minute goal coming from a skilled pass from Cirio to the powerful right-boot of Neumann, who is referred to chiefly as Jeeeer-oooon-iiiiiiii-mooooooooo because it-s impossible not to have fun whilst yelling extended syllables. This goal rounded off the game perfectly for United-s passionate supporters.
For the remaining 20 minutes, an inspired United chose not to sit back and defend, instead continuing to push the ball forward to their strikers and creating scoring opportunities. This pressure went right into the final minutes, with Sydney fighting in desperation to score a last minute goal, but finding themselves denied once again by Galekovic and compounded pressure from a structured United defence.
When the whistle blew, Adelaide United stood triumphantly, having played as a team for a full 90 minutes, their sustained efforts creating goal-scoring opportunities for the adored Djite, Ferreira and Jeronimo. A passionate display from Del Piero and Despotovic failing to impact the final result, a disappointed Sydney FC left the field to be cheered on by the remaining supporters, the animosity toward Farina appearing to have had little impact on the broader fan-base.
And so it went that Adelaide United, alongside an animated Josep Gombau; walked from the field with a clean sheet, a renewed confidence and undoubtedly, an energised and excited group of supporters.
Goals: Djite (16-), Ferreira (26-), Jeronimo (79-)
Red Cards: Nil
Yellow Cards:
SYDNEY: Ryall, Despotovic
ADELAIDE: Isaias, Elrich, Jeronimo
