Victory 2 Adelaide 1

MELBOURNE Victory continued their preparation for the Asian Champions League with a 2-1 victory over fellow participant Adelaide United in a trial match at Olympic Park.

A stunning free-kick from the departing Adrian Caceres opened the scoring after 17 minutes before Danny Allsopp doubled the advantage with a clinical finish past Eugene Galekovic. Dez Giraldi snatched an equaliser late in the first half to breathe life back into the contest, but the Melbourne rearguard remained steadfast for the remainder of the match, withstanding a late onslaught to emerge victorious.

Victory made the inside running early, dominating the midfield as Kaz Patafta staked his claim for a berth in the starting line-up come matchday one of Asia’s premier club competition. The youngster showed much composure as he moved the ball around the park with almost metronomic-like consistency.

Archie Thompson, equipped with a startling pair of orange boots, looked ominous, continuously making the Adelaide backline look second rate with his speed and slight of foot, while Caceres’ penetrating runs down the flank proved troublesome.

And with little over a quarter of an hour gone, the Mariners bound winger proved emphatically why A-League clubs clamoured for his services, curling a majestic free-kick over the United wall and beyond the reach of a hapless Galekovic. Allsopp made it 2-0 five minutes later, latching onto a defence splitting Thompson ball before prodding a shot past Adelaide’s custodian.

Only a poor first touch prevented Caceres from netting a double before Adelaide wrestled back control of the match, with the imposing Jonas Salley bullying Melbourne in the middle of the park. The Ivorian stifled the usually effective Carlos Hernandez of space to unleash his trademark passing game, breaking down Victory’s forward thrusts with sheer brute force.

Travis Dodd and Diego Walsh were particularly impressive, shunning aside a disappointing A-League campaign where the duo struggled for form and fitness. But in the absence of Olyroos’ Bruce Djite and Nathan Burns, Giraldi was presented with a chance to impress and didn’t disappoint, halving the deficit as he tapped the ball home into an empty net after Dodd cut a ball across from the left.

With momentum now in their favour, Adelaide ran rampant, dictating the tempo as their fluent and attractive passing game came to the fore. And if the side were more effective in possession, Adelaide could have conceivably secured a victory, forcing Melbourne into their own half for the majority of the second period.

With coach Ernie Merrick returning from a scouting trip to Hawaii, assistant Aaron Healey took the reigns of the side and was pleased with the performance. “We were happy with the hitout,” he said. "All the teams we will be playing against in the Champions League are already in season so we really need these games against quality opposition like Adelaide to get us right for the match against Chunnam Dragons. "The boys kept possession well and we scored a couple of good goals." He added: “It’s just a pity there was only three or four people here, it would’ve been great if Adrian could knock that in at Telstra Dome in front of 50,000 people,” Healey added.“Adrian’s been working hard in training and hopefully he pulls another free kick like that out for us in the Champions League.”

The mammoth task facing Melbourne to qualify for the knockout stages of the competition was highlighted by Gamba Osaka’s recent 6-1 thrashing of MLS Champions Houston Dynamo, and this was not lost on Healey. However, the former Joey remained upbeat about Victory’s prospects. “We are trying to keep the DVD of that game away from the team,” he joked. “I think a few of them know the result but Gamba will be a tough team."Out of the side which played, they had six Japanese internationals still to come in.“They will be an impressive side, but there are no easy beats in this ACL. All we can do is prepare, do things which are right and hopefully on matchday, get the job done.”

Victory goalkeeper Michael Theoklitos, who featured in the first half, said it’s vital to play A-League opposition and ensure no stone is left unturned in preparation for Victory’s AFC Champions League debut.“Obviously we’ve had a bit of a break because we didn’t make the Finals Series, so to play Hyundai A-League opposition is very important leading up to the AFC Champions League,” Theoklitos said.“The AFC Champions League is unknown for all of us, so training has been absolutely buzzing and we’re really looking forward to it.”

Melbourne Victory 2 (Caceres 17’, Allsopp 22’)Adelaide United 1 (Giraldi 42’)