Saturday sees a re-match of last season’s Grand Final as third-placed Melbourne Victory take on sixth-placed Adelaide United at Etihad Stadium.
The home side will start as favourites, although they struggled in the early stages against Newcastle last week before the class of Archie Thompson and Carlos Hernandez eventually got them over the line.

Ernie Merrick has at least one enforced change to make, with Tom Pondeljak likely to be sidelined for up to six weeks with a calf injury and the Victory boss is also sweating on the fitness of Roddy Vargas who is battling to overcome a quad problem in time to feature.

On a more positive note for the reigning premiers, Costa Rican midfielder Marvin Angulo and Thai striker Sutee Suksomkit have received international clearance and could make their A-League debuts against the Reds.

Merrick’s opposite number Aurelio Vidmar, meanwhile, has received a boost with the news that Travis Dodd has recovered from a calf injury and declared himself fit to play, but promising midfielder Fabian Barbiero will miss the game through suspension. The Reds will have drawn great confidence from their battling win over Sydney last weekend and Vidmar will have been particularly delighted by Cristiano’s  two-goal performance, as finding the back of the net has been a major issue for the South Australians throughout the current campaign.

With both sides coming off confidence-boosting results in Round 11, it is a tough one to call. Home advantage could lead punters towards backing Melbourne, but Merrick’s men have only managed to chalk up one victory at Etihad Stadium so far this term and they will undoubtedly miss Pondeljak’s energy in midfield.

Hernandez and Thompson nevertheless have the quality to unpick any defence in the league and if they fire on Saturday, it may just be enough to secure the three points for the home side.

Prediction: Melbourne Victory 1-0 Adelaide United