"It doesn't get much bigger" - historic Melbourne Derby decider awaits
For the first time, the A-League Men will be decided by a Melbourne Derby: Melbourne City against Melbourne Victory. As teenage City striker Max Caputo put it, “these are the moments you dream of”.
In its 20th season, the A-League Men will be decided with one of the biggest grand finals it could hope for. Melbourne City against Melbourne Victory; a Melbourne Derby grand final. As teenage City striker Max Caputo put it, “these are the moments you dream of”
Cruising to a 4-1 aggregate win over Western United on Saturday evening, City punched their ticket to a fourth grand final in five seasons, hours after Victory stunned Auckland FC 2-0 in New Zealand, turning a 1-0 deficit from the first leg into a 2-1 aggregate win.
It set up a dream final between the two at AAMI Park next Saturday evening, the first time the pair will have ever met on the final day of the season and just the third time ever that a champion will be crowned by a derby – City previously meeting United in a decider and the title once being decided by an F3 Derby.
“It doesn't get much bigger,” said Caputo, a former Caroline Springs George Cross and Essendon Royals junior who graduated from City’s academy side.
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“These are moments you dream of. We were watching the [other semifinal] before our game, and we saw Victory won – and that kind of geed the boys up even more.
“So now we're going into a grand final, a derby final. So it doesn't get much bigger than this, does it?”
The hope immediately being that the derby will sell out – this year’s Christmas Derby between the two drew 24,053 fans to the 30k venue – a clash between City and Victory also shapes as providing a boon to cash-strapped league administrators the Australian Professional Leagues (APL).
Not only can league bosses now likely count on a strong gate and media interest in their showpiece event, but it also offers a rare chance to provide a Melburnian A-League scene that has become increasingly stagnant with a much-needed shot in the arm.
“This is the best outcome for the A-League in general, in Australian football, to have a Melbourne derby in a grand final like this,” said Caputo. “It sure brings bums on seats – not much bigger stakes than this."
With so much on the line, the game between the two rivals also shapes as providing enough fireworks on the field to match the ones that will inevitably mark the pre-game festivities.
City skipper Aziz Behich, for instance, has a… colourful relationship with Victory fans and repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to get amongst it in games such as this.
Victory attackers Daniel Arzani and Bruno Fornaroli, meanwhile, made their A-League Men breakthroughs in the colours of their opponents, with the latter experiencing a bitter break-up during the Warren Joyce era in Bundoora.
Adding an extra bit of spice, City legend Patrick Kisnorbo was named coach of Victory at the start of the season only to walk out months into what was supposed to be a three-year pact, on the eve of the Christmas Derby no less, to take up a job with Yokohama F Marinos, who are 40% owned by the City Football Group.
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“I don't think you have to do much revving up,” said Nathaniel Atkinson. “The occasion does it itself. This week's going to be a big week, not just for us and them, but for the public as well. Saying it's hopefully special for the fans,
“The league is a lot different to finals footy. You saw Auckland; they were so strong all year, and they got knocked out in the last game. All you need to do is win. It doesn't matter if it's pretty or not. You need to put in good team performance. But at the end of the day, it's who wins. That's the most important thing.
“We're [Arzani] good mates, but I don't think we'll be talking much this week.
“We've proven that we're probably the best defence in the league, and they've got some exciting attacking players. So it's going to be a good game.”