
A-League Grand Final Preview

24 May 2024
Sydney FC will head into the A-League Grand Final as heavy underdogs despite their heroics in the second leg of their semi final in Gosford, off the back of Adelaide United's scintillating form across the last three months.
The Reds have not lost an A-League fixture since January 4th, when a heavily depleted side due to injury and international call-up were defeated 2-1 by Wellington, and have only lost three games this season in total. The Sky Blues had a patchy start to the season, but themselves only lost five games on their way to a fifth-placed finish, largely off the back of eleven draws, and then lost the first leg of the semi final against Central Coast Mariners at home.
Adelaide United's attacking style under Hugo Montgomery saw them score a record 70 goals in 26 fixtures, with the likes of Musa Toure (19 goals), Tete Yengi (17) and Nestory Irankunda (9) amongst the top goalscoring threats in the league, and after an inconsistent start to the season their defense finished as the top-ranked in the competition with 31 goals conceded.
Sydney's 37 goals conceded ranked it second in the league, with a largely settled back four of Rhyan Grant, Gabriel Lacerda, Jack Rodwell and Joel King and Andrew Redmayne in net. Patrick Wood has largely played a lone hand up front with 15 of his side's 45 goals for the season, with Robert Mak's eight goals the next best.
Alexandar Popovic is unlikely to start for Adelaide due to a bruised shoulder picked up in training, while Sydney FC do not expect star midfielder Anthony Caceres to gain fitness in time for selection on Saturday night.