Carl Veart praised Adelaide United’s work ethic in its plucky 2-1 away win against Perth Glory at HBF Park on Sunday.
The Reds secured back-to-back wins for the second time this season to provisionally climb into third place on the Isuzu UTE A-League ladder.
Hiroshi Ibusuki scored on the stroke of half-time with a diving header off Craig Goodwin’s corner and then substitute Mohamed Toure doubled the advantage before the hour mark.
Veart lauded Adelaide’s application after the Club registered its first victory out west since January 2018.
“It’s a difficult place to come to, Perth,” Veart admitted in the post-match press conference.
“I don’t think we’ve won here for quite a few years, we knew it was going to be tough, and give the boys credit.
“They dug in, fought hard and got the three points.
“… To get the goal just right on half-time was a great time to score.”
Veart believed Toure’s finish really took the sting out of the contest, particularly in the sweltering conditions.
The 17-year-old exhibited his sublime speed on the wing before squeezing his shot in at the near post.
“I’d say the second goal sort of killed Perth off a little bit,” Veart said.
“It was hot conditions today, the game sort of just flattened out a little bit and then we had a little bit of interest in the last five minutes.”
Veart also commended the impact of his substitutions in the match but more broadly throughout the campaign.
Not just Toure, but the likes of Nestory Irankunda and Bernardo have made meaningful contributions off the bench.
“It’s full credit to the boys, they’ve been doing the job and that have been coming off the bench – it has been (the case) all season,” he said.
“I don’t know how many times one of our substitutes has come on and scored or provided an assist.
“It’s a testament to the playing group that they know what to do when they come on and do the job that we ask them to do.”
Ibusuki’s goal is now his fourth in nine matches following his midseason capture.
The Reds boss said the 31-year-old has acclimatised really well to life in Adelaide and has been excellent in leading the line.
“He’s fitted in seamlessly with the group,” Veart continued.
“I suppose we’re fortunate enough that we’ve got three Spanish boys and Hiroshi (Ibusuki) speaks perfect Spanish as well.
“So there’s a little quartet of four Spanish guys pretty much, even though he’s Japanese, but the way he plays, he’s a quality player.
“You can see his touches, the way he holds the ball up, the way he brings other players into the game.
“So we’ve been very fortunate to get Hiroshi to the Club.”
