Aaron Mooy haunts old club as Melbourne City edge Western Sydney
Aaron Mooy put the dagger to his old side in Melbourne City's 2-1 A-League win over Western Sydney. Let go by the Wanderers last season, Mooy curled home a 73rd minute winner to give City a first victory over Tony Popovic's side and prolong Western Sydney's winless streak to 14 matches.
City dominated the match, despite falling behind after five minutes. Yojiro Takahagi's opener on debut for Western Sydney was cancelled out by Jacob Melling 20 minters later.
As the clock ticked down, City were in danger of not finding the goal their play merited. But after good lead-up work from David Williams and Jason Hoffman, Mooy hit home from just outside the box.
After the A-League's three-week break, both sides rejuvenated their line-ups with four changes each. Western Sydney named three debutants for the match, with Japanese full-back Yusuke Tanaka, defender Sam Gallaway and playmaker Takahagi playing their first game in red and black.
The team looked disjointed and unable to seriously hurt City and it was a slice of luck that brought their opener after just five minutes. Takahagi's low, curling free-kick eluded all-comers and goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne to sneak in at the back post.
The Japanese pair shared a sumo-inspired celebration in front of the away fans, while Redmayne would endure taunts from his home fans for his blunder.
That was Western Sydney's sole shot for the half, and one of just three all match. And on 24 minutes, City were back on terms. Mooy, playing against the Wanderers for the first time since his off-season move south, cut the ball back for Melling to head home.
City coach John van 't Schip said he was pleased with his team's resolve after dropping behind. "We kept on playing our game," he said. "The way we played, the stats, the opportunities we got… we deserved for sure the win."
A despondent Popovic said the team's preparation was not ideal. "Today was always going to be a tough one, integrating four new players. The lack of match fitness showed in those players. Their pressure, in the end it told."
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