Juan Mata nears return as Victory push for late climb up table
Just a point off third but also yet to seal a place in the playoffs, Arthur Diles feels Melbourne Victory is well placed with two rounds remaining and Juan Mata nearing a rapid return from injury.
Just a point off third but also yet to seal a place in the playoffs, Melbourne Victory boss Arthur Diles feels his side is in a good position entering the penultimate round of the A-League Men season, with the coach anticipating a further boost will soon be delivered through the return of injured Spanish maestro Juan Mata.
Seeking to bounce back from an abject 1-0 loss to Wellington the previous weekend, Victory flew across the Tasman and took a point of second-placed Auckland last Saturday; returning to Australia rueful not to take all three points after twice conceding from set pieces in the 2-2 draw.
With two rounds remaining on the season, the result leaves the Victorians sitting fifth on the A-League Men table, just a point back of third-placed Sydney FC, who vaulted above them after a Sydney Derby win, but also just a point clear of sixth-placed Melbourne City and not yet safe from seventh-placed Macarthur, who are five points adrift.
A win against either the table-topping Newcastle Jets on Friday evening – Diles described facing the league’s top-two in back-to-back weeks so close to finals as an important acid test for his side last week – or bottom-placed Western Sydney the following week would be enough to secure them a finals spot. Two wins, meanwhile, would likely be enough to lock in a home elimination final.
I’ve said it before, it’s been a unique season this year; a lot of ups and downs for everybody,” said Diles. “In the end, it put us in this position that we’re in, where you’re one point off third, and you know you’re still not mathematically in the finals, either. So it’s something that you always have to be aware of.
JDL Media is committed to keeping its reporting on Australian football away from paywalls.
If you’re in a position to, please consider supporting this coverage at Ko-Fi.
“But [you] just keep working, stick to your process, keep working hard and knowing that you don’t look too far behind, but you want to look ahead, and you want to look up the top and be as close to there as you can at the pointy end of the season.
“And that it’s now on us. Everything’s in our hands. We’re in control of our own situation, and that’s a good position to be.”
While he won’t feature against the Jets at AAMI Park on Friday, Victory do appear set to be bolstered for their trip to Western Sydney and any subsequent finals campaign by the return of Mata, who suffered a fractured elbow that required surgery in the defeat to Wellington.
“He’s been training,” Diles said. “He joined the team this week. So he’s back on a training paddock, which is fantastic.
“From that medical point of view, I’m not 100% certain as to what the plan is [for protecting the elbow during games], but he’s not training with anything. He’s just bandaged up, and there’s no brace. He’s recovered really, really well. He’s running, he’s joining in with the team at training. So he’s probably ahead of where we thought
“A [Western Sydney return is] what we’re hoping for, if anything changes in the next three or four days, that could shift. But at this point, we’ve pencilled that in as his match where he returns, and hopefully, we tick every box and get him there.”
Elsewhere in the Victory attack, Socceroo striker Nishan Velupillay grabbed his second goal since he was called back into the national team for the March international window against Auckland, adding to the assist that he grabbed when he was introduced as a second-half substitute against Curaçao.
After a multitude of injury issues spilled over from the pre-season and kept him out until late November, the attacker feels that he’s overcome both the physical and mental gremlins that came with this period and, ahead of two crucial weeks, is eager to do more.
“I think it’s pretty clear that if we win both our games, we’ll end up in the six and potentially higher,” Velupillay said. “We know what we have to do. And whilst we’re aware [of] below us, we’re not too concerned with anyone else. We’re trying to just focus on our own game.
“It’s one thing to physically get over an injury, but also mentally and emotionally get over it as well. So I think I’m past that now, which is good. I’ve recovered and am trying to contribute more to the team and help in any way possible. It’s always good to score and assist, but I’m looking to do it more often.”
Velupillay’s assist carried on what has become something of a habit for the 24-year-old in green and gold, wherein his call-ups for the national team are met with scepticism, only for him to pop up with some form of key contribution – his international record now standing at four goal involvements in six games.
JDL Media is committed to keeping its reporting on Australian football away from paywalls.
If you’re in a position to, please consider supporting this coverage at Ko-Fi.
Thanks to his injury issues, March’s call-up marked the first time he’d been in camp since 12 months prior – when he scored against Indonesia and China – and beyond the chance to represent Australia, the environment fostered by Tony Popovic is something he feels has carried over to clubland.
“It’s always a privilege to be back there,” he said. “It was a bit wild between last year and this year. I was happy to be there. Two good results as well, which is always positive. Really privileged to be in that position.
“[Carry over is] probably a byproduct of being in that environment. I don’t try to focus on it too much, but being in that high-level environment, you’re always gonna benefit from that. It’s not something I focus on, but if it can give me any added boost, then I’m happy about that.”
Of course, beyond pursuing a playoff berth, Velupillay is also one of those players who would be considered as ‘on the bubble’ for a place in Popovic’s final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
It’s the first time he’s experienced the cut and thrust, the nervousness and potential heartbreak, of the build-up to the world’s biggest sporting event, but, for now at least, he’s not feeling overwhelmed by the process.
“There’s a pressure there that you just have to accept,” Velupillay said. “It’s gonna be there. The higher you play, the more people expect of you. If that comes with the job, then I’m fine with that. This is why we play football, and I’m happy to be in this position. But [I’m] more excited for the challenge than worried about it.”