Round 7 of the A-League kicks off in Brisbane as the Roar have just their second proper home game of the season.
They will be hoping for a happy homecoming after finally earning their first point last week in an entertaining 4-4 draw with Macarthur.
You could almost talk yourself into the Roar winning this one outright when you consider Melbourne City’s performance last week, going down to Western Sydney.
However City are perfect so far on the road, winning all three away games against Newcastle, Western United and Perth and they should be primed for a bounce back effort.
BEST: Melbourne City to Win $2.20 | VALUE: Melbourne City to Win & Over 3.5 Goals $4.80
Go Media Stadium will be buzzing for their first taste of the Kiwi Clasico as their Auckland FC side will chase a sixth straight win and clean sheet.
Perhaps the most impressive part of their run is the ability to find late goals to break the deadlock.
They won the first derby in Wellington with Jake Brimmer scoring a goal in the final ten minutes before adding a second in stoppage time.
Last week in the driving rain they needed 83 minutes to find a breakthrough against Newcastle and Wellington will likely put up more stubborn resistance.
However in their current form, you just cannot back against the new boys and they should ride the wave to another win.
BEST: Auckland to Win $1.91 | VALUE: Draw/Auckland HT/FT $4.60
Adelaide kept their unbeaten run alive last week but it was still a frustrating effort being held to a draw by the struggling Perth Glory last week.
They had no answer for Adam Taggart as he took advantage of an out of sorts Adelaide team.
However based on the way they have been playing this season, they should be able to find a way to bounce back against another struggling opponent.
Newcastle has lost four of five including three straight, as their defence just has not been able to keep opponents at bay.
Adelaide should win this one and if they are in fact fired up after dropping points last week this could get out of hand.
BEST: Adelaide to Win $1.92 | VALUE: Adelaide to Win -2 Goals $5.75
Macarthur might be the most intriguing team to watch this weekend based solely on their wild and frustrating 4-4 draw with Brisbane last week.
There is a chance that the lingering irritation from letting the win slip away thanks to two own goals might start some sort of tail spin but Western United might not be the best team to take advantage of it.
John Aloisi’s side have lost three of their last four, only interrupted by a 3-1 win over Perth but it did show their attack has something going for it.
While they might not be able to take full advantage of Macarthur, the draw might be the way to go, with three of the last five head to head meetings between these two ending with the spoils shared.
BEST: Draw $3.90 | VALUE: Draw HT/FT Double $6.00
This is not the match to find the big money play in the market with this one heavily slanted towards the home side, and justifiably so.
Through six matches they have four wins, one draw and one defeat (against a good Wellington side), while Perth are still battling at the other end of the table.
When things do not go the Glory’s way, they tend to spiral out of control and once the Victory get an opening they should take full advantage of it.
That opening could very well come from Greek striker Nikos Vergos with the 28-year-old coming off his second A-League goal of the season.
BEST: Victory HT/FT Double $1.80 | VALUE: Nikos Vergos First Goalscorer
It is fair to say that both sides’ Asian commitments have had an impact on their respective domestic form with both sides somewhat off the pace so far.
For Central Coast they have only lost once this season, but they have been held to three draws and just the one win thanks in large part to an attack that has scored just three A-League goals.
On the plus side though, they will have an extra 48 hours rest from their clash with Yokohama F Marinos on Tuesday night (a 4-0 loss), compared to Sydney’s ACL2 clash with Kaya FC.
However Sydney have given more cause for optimism, even if they are not the most consistent of teams, alternating wins and losses in the A-League so far.
While both of those losses have come on the weekend directly after an ACL2 match, I just can’t see how the Mariners get anything from this game while they can’t score goals.
BEST: Sydney to Win $2.15 | VALUE: Sydney to Win 1-0, 2-0 or 3-0 $4.40