Adelaide United’s top four aspirations ended following a 3-0 loss to premiers Sydney FC at Allianz Stadium on Sunday night.
Matt Simon’s first-half opener in stoppage time handed Sydney the momentum and the Reds never recovered as Bobo netted a double after the break.
Marco Kurz made four changes to the starting line-up. Tarek Elrich received his first start since his return from a knee injury, while Taylor Regan replaced Ersan Gülüm who missed the clash with calf soreness. Baba Diawara led the line from the outset for the first time since Round 15 and Nikola Mileusnic was preferred over Ryan Kitto on the wing.
Adelaide controlled possession early in the encounter without ever threatening Sydney’s goal.
After a largely uneventful opening 30 minutes, the tempo of the match lifted and it was the hosts who began to push forward and dominate in the first-half.
The first genuine chance of the game did not arrive until the 37th minute when Paul Izzo produced a fantastic save to repel Simon’s low drive.
Adelaide had a half-chance of their own when Nathan Konstandopoulos nearly saw his shot creep into the bottom corner.
But after that it was all Sydney and Mierzejewski should have put the Sky Blues in front after squandering a free header.
And they took the lead on the stroke of half-time when Simon headed in Bobo’s cross.
It proved to be a crucial blow as Graham Arnold’s men extend their lead through Bobo’s quick-fire brace in the second-half.
The Brazilian headed in Mierzejewski’s inviting cross and then on the half-volley dispatched his effort into the corner from a fortuitous deflection.
Adelaide could not mount a comeback as they suffered their first defeat in four matches, but have virtually guaranteed a fifth place finish with one league game to spare ahead of the finals series.
Key moments:
37’ | Simon evades the attentions of Taylor Regan and forces Izzo into a quality save on the angle.
39’ | Mileusnic controls a forward pass from Elrich and the winger finds Konstandopoulos, who drags his first-time shot wide of Andrew Redmayne’s near post.
41’ | Mierzejewski is left unmarked in the area and misses a free header over the bar following Michael Zullo’s cross.
45’+3’ | GOAL: Mierzejewski breaks free and feeds Bobo, who picks out Simon with a delightful cross on the left and he clinically heads past Izzo.
59’ | GOAL: Mierzejewski is again involved as Bobo meets his accurate cross to head home from the short corner.
66’ | GOAL: Milos Ninkovic’s shot ricochets off Elrich and lands into the path of Bobo, who unleashes a first-time strike on the half-volley, leaving Izzo helpless.
Match details:
Sunday, 8 April 2018
Hyundai A-League 2017/18 Season – Round 26
Sydney FC 3 (Simon 45’+3’ Bobo 59’ 66’)
Adelaide United 0
Venue: Allianz Stadium
