Sydney FC 0 def by. Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (Duke 19’)
Sydney FC have gone down 1-0 in the #SydneyDerby despite a dominant 90 minute performance in a game they should have won.
Moments That Mattered:
- Ninkovic Crossbar – 13’ – A cheeky dink into the box by Brattan found Ninkovic but his chipped effort rebounds off the crossbar.
- Le Fondre Chance – 15’ – Grant whips in a cross which meets Le Fondre but his downwards header forces a parried save by Lopar.
- Duke Goal – 19’ – Duke opens the scoring with a header from inside the box after a curled cross from the right.
- Ninkovic Chance – 30’ – Ninkovic sends an effort towards the near post but is dealt with by the outstretched arm of Lopar.
- Barbarouses Goal Denied By VAR – 51’ – Barbarouses’ header hits the inside of the post and appears to cross the line before Lopar collects it. However a VAR check proves inconclusive.
- Sydney FC Penalty Shout Denied By VAR – 61’ – VAR controversially dismisses Sydney FC’s shout for a penalty with Baumjohann’s cross striking the hand of Baccus inside the area.
- Barbarouses Chance – 72’ – Following some Ninkovic magic, Barbarouses goes clear on goal but his low show is saved by an onrushing Wanderers goalkeeper.
- Ninkovic Chance – 90+3’ – In the dying stages of the game, a chest down from McGowan in the box falls to Ninkovic who volleys but a Wanderers player throws himself in the path of the ball to deny a certain goal.
Sydney FC have fallen in the Sydney Derby after dominating the game and creating the majority of the chances.
The Sky Blues controlled the game from the start and were inches away from being rewarded when Ninkovic sent a dinked effort onto the crossbar.
The Serbian was denied again later in the half along with striker Adam Le Fondre but it was the Wanderers who went in at the break 1-0 up thanks to a Mitch Duke header.
It was much of the same in the second half, with Brattan and O’Neill controlling the midfield, while Barbarouses was denied a goal by the VAR when his header came off the post, and was ruled not to have crossed the line.
The Sky Blues were also denied a penalty by the VAR after the ball clearly hit the hand of Baccus as Sydney FC flooded the Wanderers half with attacks, while Lopar made a fabulous save from Barbarouses.
In the final minutes, McGowan chested the ball to Ninkovic who was six yards out only for a Wanderers’ defender to make a last-ditch challenge.
Despite being in control of the game, the Sky Blues suffer their first defeat of the season and return back home to Leichhardt Oval on Friday night when they take on a winless Newcastle Jets side.
What they said: Steve Corica: “It’s a bit difficult to take. I’m so very proud of the boys, they dominated from the start to finish.”
“Milos was sensational tonight. They couldn’t get out of their half. I’ve got a lot of disappointed boys in the change room but when I speak to them it’ll be very positive.”
“The one chance they had was the goal, it was costly of course but I thought our boys got stuck in and we won every second ball so I’m happy with the way we defended.”
[On the overall atmosphere] “The pitch was good, the stadium was great, it was a top derby, just the wrong result.”
Sydney FC: 1. Andrew REDMAYNE (GK), 4. Alex WILKINSON, 5. Alexander BAUMJOHANN (17. Anthony CACERES 72’), 6. Ryan MCGOWAN, 8. Paulo RETRE (16. Joel KING 86’), 9. Adam Le FONDRE, 10. Milos NINKOVIC, 11. Kosta BARBAROUSES, 13. Brandon O’NEILL (18. Luke IVANOVIC 79’), 23. Rhyan GRANT, 26. Luke BRATTAN.
Subs Not Used: 20. Thomas HEWARD-BELLE, 2. Patrick FLOTTMAN, 21. Harry Van Der SAAG, 27. Jordan SWIBEL.
Yellow Cards: Ryan MCGOWAN 22’, Rhyan GRANT 55’, Paulo RETRE 79’, Luke BRATTAN 85’
Red Cards: None.
Western Sydney Wanderers: 1. Daniel LOPAR (GK), 4. Dylan MCGOWAN, 5. Daniel GEORGIEVSKI, 6. Matthew JURMAN, 7. Mitchell DUKE, 14. Alexander MEIER, 17. Keanu BACCUS, 19, Pirmin SCHWEGLER, 22. Nicholas SULLIVAN (35. Mohamed ADAM 49’), 27. Kwame YEBOAH, 29. Daniel WILMERING.
Subs Not Used: 14. Tass MOURDOUKOUTAS, 23. Kostandinos GROZOS, 33. Tate RUSSELL, 34. Patrick ZIEGLER, 37. Jake TREW, 40. Nicholas SUMAN (GK).
Yellow Cards: Nicholas SULLIVAN 22’, Keanu BACCUS 41’, Pirmin SCHWEGLER 55’
Red Cards: None.
Ground: BankWest Stadium
Crowd: 28, 519
Referee: Alireza Faghani
