On Saturday night, Sydney FC will travel to Macarthur to take on the Australia Cup champions in the Sky Blues’ first away game within the state.
It is a tough trip for Steve Corica’s team after Macarthur have found form this season, with former Sydney FC marquee Dwight Yorke at the helm. Corica and Yorke were team-mates back in 2005 and this will be the first time that they have come up against each other as Head Coaches.
Sydney were at home last weekend, and failed to overcome a ten man Adelaide side despite dominating the contest and creating many chances. They will be looking for a change in fortunes this time around though and hoping that they can convert their efforts in and around goal.
Sydney FC will be without Adam Le Fondre who limped off in the first half against Adelaide United last week however it is most likely Pat Wood will lead the line for the Sky Blues. Patrick Wood is the top scorer in this fixture in A-League history having already netted three times against the Bulls in five appearances.
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In the last meeting between these two sides at Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney dealt a knock-out punch to Macarthur in a Boxing Day clash which ended 3-0 to the visitors thanks to goals from Pat Wood, Max Burgess and Trent Buhagiar.
Macarthur have been impressive so far this season, already lifting the first piece of silverware available, the Australia Cup, and Dwight Yorke is yet to see defeat as boss in his first eight games in charge. They have recruited well in the off-season with a number of acquisitions including Daniel Arzani who has hit the ground running.
Last week, they travelled down to play Western United and played out a 1-1 draw in an even contest where both sides had chances to win it. Of concern to Macarthur was the departure of goalkeeper Filip Kurto who left the game in the second half due to a calf strain. Kurto was named in the Macarthur squad for this clash, so he could be back into the starting eleven for Saturday’s match.
This match will be the 6th meeting between the two sides with the overall head to head sitting even at 2 wins a piece and one draw. Sydney have had great success at Campbelltown Stadium however, winning both of their clashes there.
Players to Watch
Daniel Arzani – Macarthur FC
Daniel Arzani was a Sydney FC junior and departed NSW and made a name for himself at Melbourne City. He enjoyed a few years of success at City and moved to their English counterparts, Manchester City, where he never made an appearance for the first team, and was loaned out numerous times, to teams such as Celtic and Utrecht. He finally returned home to Australia this year where he has found a home at Macarthur under Dwight Yorke.
Yorke has the Australian playing his best football in a long time, which has him back in the discussion for the Socceroos having already gained six caps for the senior side. Already this season, he has one goal and one assist and has started each Isuzu UTE A-League match. If Sydney are wishing to get a positive result from this clash, they will need to ensure that Arzani remains quiet.
Pat Wood – Sydney FC
The leading scorer in this fixture has been with the Sky Blues since 2015 when he was in the Sydney FC Academy. He made his debut for the first team in 2021 and has gone from strength to strength since then, after getting called up to the Australian U23’s side during the AFC U23 Asian Cup. Wood has been behind Le Fondre in the pecking order this season, but took his chance by finding the net in the 2-2 draw against Adelaide United last weekend, when the Englishman limped off.
For this match, it is highly likely that he will be leading the line and many Sydney FC fans are excited to see what he can do in the new system that Steve Corica is playing. Wood also loves scoring against Macarthur having scored half of his Isuzu UTE A-League goals against the Black and White. He will be hoping to add more to that tally this weekend.
Match Details
Macarthur FC v Sydney FC
Isuzu UTE A-League Round Four
Saturday 29th October 2022
Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown, NSW
Kick Off: 7:45pm AEDT
Broadcast Live: 10Bold & Paramount+
Tickets: Click Here
