Adelaide United had to settle for a share of the spoils against Perth Glory and Head Coach Carl Veart was frustrated his side failed to collect maximum points.
Adelaide was held to a 1-1 draw in its Round 1 contest at HBF Parl on Saturday in front of more than 17,000 spectators.
Kusini Yengi deservedly put the Reds ahead though is opener was cancelled out by a magnificent Bruno Fornaroli strike before half-time.
Veart lauded his team’s effort and intensity they brought to the game, however was left to rue a plethora of squandered chances.
“We’re disappointed to come away with a point,” Veart told reporters in the post-match press conference.
“I thought our boys were tremendous tonight. The style of football they played is what we want.
“We just couldn’t get the ball in the net – we did everything but that.
“We created some great opportunities and pretty much had control of the game for large parts of the game.
“Coming to Perth it’s a very difficult place to come to, especially with the crowd that they had here tonight.
“So full credit to our boys, they worked extremely hard and very proud of them.”
On numerous occasions, particularly in the first-half Adelaide was able to penetrate the wide areas and get in behind their wing-backs and centre-backs, causing several problems.
Veart said the unknown of Perth heading into the season due to their lack of pre-season games meant it was extra pleasing with how his team acquitted themselves tactically.
“I thought we got it pretty much spot on tonight,” he said.
“It was difficult, both teams haven’t had a lot of games in the pre-season.
“We were a little bit unsure how they would set-up, but very happy with the way that we played.
“… I thought the speed of the game was excellent. I thought it was a great spectacle to watch and that’s what the A-League has to be about.”
Veart also praised the Yengi’s impact after scoring the Reds’ first league goal of the campaign.
The boss has put his faith in the young striker and insisted he will continue to improve the more he plays.
“I’ve said this all along,” he continued.
“He has great potential. He scored a good goal tonight, made it very difficult for the Perth defenders.
“He’s still learning his craft, he’s still very young so he just needs to be more consistent, but very happy with his performance.”
Next match details:
Saturday, 27 November vs Melbourne City
Isuzu UTE A-League 2021/22 – Round 2
Kick-off 7.15pm ACDT
Venue: Coopers Stadium
Stream: Paramount+
