Our Jets return home to McDonald Jones Stadium for the first time in 3 weeks to take on Wellington with revenge on the cards after our last outing with the Pheonix less than two weeks ago.
Our last start saw Adelaide pull off a snatch-and-grab late goal to secure the victory despite us having 10 shots on target across the course of the game.
Wellington currently sit just outside the top six in seventh, falling short of collecting points against Brisbane last weekend.
Our side currently sits six points away from sixth place and will look to up the ante this weekend as we launch a charge towards the finals.
Here’s the full breakdown of Friday night’s clash:
ADELAIDE UNITED V NEWCASTLE JETS
Date: Friday 18th March 2022
Kick-off: 7:45pm
Venue: McDonald Jones Stadium
How to Watch: SECURE YOUR TICKETS
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Played: 43
Jets: 14
Draws: 6
Wellington: 23
OUT FOR REVENGE
Friday night presents our side with the opportunity for redemption against the Phoenix who just ten days ago, stole the three points from our grasp in the previous fixture.
Our Jets will be looking to end a run of late concessions and shore up our defensive woes by getting on the front foot early in the piece.
Interestingly, the honours are split evenly between the two sides when playing at McDonald Jones Stadium, with each side winning eight matches and sharing the spoils three times.
Our side did enjoy a fabulous 4-0 victory over Wellington when they last visited Newcastle in December – a performance the team will look to channel again this Sunday.
This fixture has been evenly contested over our past 10 meetings, as Wellington have managed five wins to our four, which includes their late winner on the Central Coast last week.
FLAMING PHOENIX
The 2021/22 season has been subject to several interruptions, making it difficult to string together solid momentum.
Our loss last weekend marked our third in a row – the only time we’ve dropped more than two matches in a row – and the team will look to buck that trend this weekend.
The two sides are on opposite ends of the form guide, as our Jets have won just one game from their last five starts, meanwhile the Phoenix has lost just one from their previous five.
The focus this weekend for the Jets will be to turn around our recent misfortune as we look to build momentum heading into the final rounds of the season.
Wellington have enjoyed some goal-scoring form of late despite their last start loss to Brisbane at the weekend – the Phoenix have averaged 1.8 goals scored across their past five games but must be wary of Newcastle who are fourth in the league for goals scored this season and have only been kept scoreless on one occasion.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Beqa Mikeltadze (Newcastle Jets)
Our Georgian goalscoring machine was lively as ever last weekend against Adelaide, having more shots on target than anyone else on the pitch.
Mikeltadze is second only to Melbourne City’s Jamie Maclaren on the A-League goalscorers list but has gone without a goal in his last three matches – a streak that he will be desperate to bring to an end this weekend.
He grabbed himself a brace when the Phoenix last visited McDonald Jones Stadium in December, and assisted one in that 4-0 win.
The 24-year-old striker has already proven his worth in the final third this season, and his studious work rate has been crucial. Beqa has won back possession for the team 33 times this season, with 24 of those coming in midfield.
The Georgian Gun has proven in his short time at the club that he is a lethal finisher and a tireless workhorse for our attack, and if he can put the finishing touch on his chances this weekend, he’ll be more than a headache for the Wellington defence.
Jaushua Sotirio (Wellington Phoenix)
Fans of both clubs can go into this game expecting a possible goalfest, and a Sotirio is likely to be right in the thick of things come Friday evening.
The 26-year-old has had 7 goal involvements from his 13 starts so far this season, which has the centre forward averaging a goal contribution just under every second game.
Sotirio assisted the Phoenix’s late goal against Brisbane last weekend and netted a penalty the last time the Jets and the Phoenix met.
If Wellington’s number 11 hops off in the team bus in the right mood it’s almost certain our backline will have its hands full – a task we will need to rise to if we’re to take home the three points on Friday.
STATS & FACTS
In seasons past, the Phoenix have had the edge over our boys in gold, but so far this season it’s one win a piece, with everything to play for this Friday.
Fans can expect an exciting contest from this one, and one that regularly brings a winner as only one match from the past 10 has produced a draw.
We head into this weekend having kept the highest possession in the competition, boasting 57.6% a game, averaging over 10% more possession per game than Wellington who sit at 47.5%.
Jason Hoffman has scored more times against Wellington than any other A-League club, having netted five times in 28 matches against the Phoenix. If Hoffman can find the net on Friday, he’ll join Roy Krishna and Shane Smeltz as the fixture’s joint highest goal scorer.
