Adelaide United assistant Joe Mullen believes it was a game of two halves as Adelaide United’s two-match winning streak ended against Melbourne City on Saturday at Coopers Stadium.
Mullen was in the hot seat after Head Coach Adrian Stenta was unavailable due to COVID-19.
He felt his side dominated the first-half, but were second best after the interval, suggesting the 1-0 defeat was “probably a fair result”.
“I thought it was a game of two halves,” Mullen said in a post-match interview.
“I thought we were very good in the first-half, but in the second-half we struggled to break their lines and ultimately they used the ground in the second-half a lot better than we did.
“And I think probably the result was a fair one in the end.”
Mullen felt his side struggled to get past City’s defensive line consistently to really mount constant pressure and create chances.
Indeed, it was the first time the Reds had been held goalless this season and their maiden setback at Coopers Stadium since 2012.
“It was breaking that last line,” Mullen admitted when asked if indecisiveness was an issue in the final third.
“So just getting in behind of them and we tried to change it up with a couple of substitutes.
“But we didn’t quite get in behind the back of their back three and that I think was the difference today.”
After Adelaide’s first home setback of the campaign, they move to three wins and three defeats after six games.
