Head Coach Richard Garcia is confident that home advantage will be a major factor in driving Glory back into the winners’ circle this week.
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The men in purple will tackle Sydney FC at HBF Park on Wednesday evening (kick-off at 6.20pm, tickets HERE) looking to end a winless run of four games and move to within touching distance of the top six.
And having been forced to play seven of their ten fixtures this term on the road, Garcia and his squad are delighted to finally be back on familiar ground.
“The main focus is that we’ve been away for so long and we want to be at home and play in front of our fans,” he said.
“We know we grow another leg when we’re at home and that’s fantastic.
“We’re probably getting at the back end of the season what some clubs had at the front end, so in that respect it’s been very good for these guys to grow resilience by playing so many away games.
“If you had told me at the start of the season that we would have to spend the first half of the year basically away from home, I think anyone would have said it’s a tall order.
“But the boys have come through it and it’s about coming out now on Wednesday, playing good football and getting a result against Sydney.”
Garcia went on to stress that while the team’s results have dipped in recent weeks, confidence within the group remains high.
“I think you’ve got to accentuate some of the positives and make sure the guys are still on track in their minds about where we’re going,” he said.
“It’s easy to lose confidence when results don’t go your way, but there have been some very promising signs and it’s just about learning from these mistakes and getting back to some of the things that we did earlier in the season and having a bit more focus on that than just on the results.
“The result is the most important thing obviously, but to get the result, the performance has to be there.
“The mentality has got to be there that we’re progressing in the right manner and I think that is coming.
“With the young squad that we have, it becomes an extended process.
“It’s about resetting again and making sure that everyone’s mindset is where it needs to be.
“In every season, you’re going to have ebbs and flows and at the moment we’re probably on a downward, so now it’s about getting the guys back on the upward.
“We’re constantly trying to improve the players and make sure that as a team we’re improving.
“That’s a process and it takes time, a little bit of patience and a lot of hard work and we’ve still got a lot of hard work to do to get to where we want to be as a group.”
Sydney FC will head West five points and three places above Glory having played a game more and while their form has been somewhat patchy, Garcia is not underestimating the threat posed by the reigning Champions and Premiers.
“Sydney FC have been good,” he said.
“They’ve taken a little while to find their feet as well.
“It’s a random season where some teams started three or four weeks earlier than others and we’re all of a sudden playing catch up due to the Asian Champions League.
“That’s the scenario and we have to make the best of it just like they have to make the best of it.
“They’re dangerous in a lot of areas.
“They have a very settled and senior squad and have been together as a group for a long time.
“They’re pretty well drilled and well versed, so it’s about us knowing their strengths and weaknesses and trying to exploit those.”
The Sky Blues have picked up two of their five wins this season on the road, downing Macarthur FC and Wellington Phoenix, although the most recent of those victories came back in late January.
Their overall record at HBF Park is an impressive one, showing 12 wins from 23 A-League visits, while their last defeat in the West came in January 2019.
Match Details
Wednesday, 24 March 2021
Perth Glory v Sydney FC
HBF Park, Perth
Kick-Off: 6:20pm (Local)(9:20pm (AEDT))
Referee: Alireza Faghani
Assistant Referee 1: Josh Manella
Assistant Referee 2: Arvin Shanmuganathan
Fourth Official: Shane Skinner
VAR: Kurt Ams
Join the conversation on Twitter using the hash-tag #PERvSYD
To purchase tickets visit www.a-league.com.au/tickets
Perth Glory squad: 1.Tando VELAPHI (gk), 5.Jonathan ASPROPOTAMITIS, 6.Osama MALIK, 8.Kosuke OTA, 9.Bruno FORNAROLI, 10.Andy KEOGH, 13.Luke BODNAR, 15.Brandon WILSON, 16.Nick SULLIVAN, 17.Diego CASTRO (C), 19.Callum TIMMINS, 18.Nick D’AGOSTINO, 20.Carlo ARMIENTO, 22.Josh RAWLINS, 23.Dane INGHAM, 24.Daniel STYNES, 29.Darryl LACHMAN, 33.Liam REDDY (gk), 38.Ciaran BRAMWELL, 88.Neil KILKENNY
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins: 6.Osama MALIK (promoted), 22.Josh RAWLINS (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: 7.Chris IKONOMIDIS (knee – 2-3 weeks)
Sydney FC squad: 1.Andrew REDMAYNE (gk), 2.Patrick FLOTTMANN, 3.Ben WARLAND, 4.Alex WILKINSON (c), 5.Alex BAUMJOHANN, 6.Ryan McGOWAN, 8.Paulo RETRE, 9.BOBÔ, 10.Milos NINKOVIC, 11.Kosta BARBAROUSES, 16.Joel KING, 17.Anthony CACERES, 18.Luke IVANOVIC, 20.Tom HEWARD-BELLE (gk), 21. Harry VAN der SAAG, 23.Rhyan GRANT, 26.Luke BRATTAN, 27.Jordan SWIBEL, 28.Calem NIEUWENHOF, 33.Pat WOOD
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins: 2.Patrick FLOTTMANN (promoted), 27.Jordan SWIBEL (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: 7.Michael ZULLO (calf), 12.Trent BUHAGIAR (knee), 19.Chris ZUVELA (knee)
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