League leaders Adelaide United have a great chance to extend their lead at the top of the table on Friday night.
The Reds are already a game clear of second-placed Central Coast Mariners, who have the bye this weekend, with the next side on the table being Week 8 opponents Perth Glory.
Rini Coolen has his side playing with a newfound confidence which has seen them remain undefeated for seven matches and I expect that record to be maintained against Perth.
The Glory lost their second match in a row to the struggling Newcastle Jets last week and Adelaide's near faultless record at Hindmarsh so far this season points to a Reds win with young gun Mathew Leckie and Argentine playmaker Marcos Flores again pulling the strings.
Verdict: Adelaide 2-1
Adelaide United vs. Perth GloryDate: Friday, 24 September 2010 Venue: Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide Local Kick-Off: 7:30pm (8:00pm AEST) Head-to-Head: All matches (played 15): Adelaide United wins 8, Perth Glory wins 4 (3 draws) Referee: Matthew Breeze
Live and exclusive broadcast on FOX Sports 2, FS2 HD and Sky Sport 1 (NZ). Hyundai A-League club radio broadcast partners are ABC Digital (Adelaide) & 882 6PR (Perth). To purchase tickets visit www.ticketek.com.au
Adelaide United squad: 1.Eugene GALEKOVIC (gk), 2.Robert CORNTHWAITE, 4.Iain FYFE, 7.Lucas PANTELIS (c), 8.Adam HUGHES, 9.Sergio VAN DIJK, 10.Marcos FLORES, 12.Paul REID, 15.Francesco MONTEROSSO, 16.Inseob SHIN, 17.Iain RAMSAY, 18.Fabian BARBIERO, 19.Mathew LECKIE, 20.Mark BIRIGHITTI (gk), 24.Cameron WATSON, 26.Joe KEENAN * one to be omitted* In: Francesco MONTEROSSO (promoted), Fabian BARBIERO (returns from injury) Out: CASSIO (suspended - 1 match) Unavailable: Daniel MULLEN (international duty), Nigel BOOGAARD (ankle - 7 weeks), Lloyd OWUSU (knee - indefinite)
Perth Glory squad: 1.Tando VELAPHI, 2.Josh MITCHELL, 3.Jamie COYNE, 4.Andy TODD, 5.Jamie HARNWELL, 7.Jacob BURNS (C), 9.Robbie FOWLER, 10.Michael BAIRD, 11.Branko JELIC, 14.Steven McGARRY, 16.Adriano PELLEGRINO, 17.Todd HOWARTH, 19.Naum SEKULOVSKI, 20.Aleks VRTESKI, 21.Mile STERJOVSKI, 22.Anthony SKORICH *one to be omitted* In: 22.Anthony SKORICH (promoted) Out: Nil Unavailable: Victor SIKORA (hip - 2 weeks), Chris COYNE (on loan -8 weeks), Scott NEVILLE (International Duty - 1 week)
