Barbarouses stars for ‘Nix, WSW coach blasts Mata agent

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Barbarouses stars for ‘Nix, WSW coach blasts Mata agent

ROUND FIVE OF THE A-LEAGUE MEN COMPETITION AT A GLANCE:

THEY SAID IT: “His agent doesn’t control the team … Fahid (Khalfallah) and his comments were out of order. They were cowardly” – Backing his decision to bench Juan Mata, Western Sydney coach Alen Stajcic hit out at the high-profile signing’s player agent Fahid Ben Khalfallah. The agent had labelled Stajcic’s treatment of the player as “insane” and “disrespectful” in the lead-up to Unite Round.

MAN OF THE WEEK: On an afternoon when Melbourne Victory had the better of chances, Kosta Barbarouses iced Wellington’s 1-0 win with a left-foot strike just inside the box. The veteran’s late goal helped the Phoenix become the first team to defeat the Victory this campaign and exacted revenge for last season’s semi-final heartbreak.

TALKING POINT: Can opposition players share a round of golf before their match? A strange question, but one that was sincerely asked in the lead-up to the Sydney derby after Sky Blues duo Joe Lolley and Jordan Courtney-Perkins shared a round with Wanderers imports Juan Mata and Marcus Antonsson. Courtney-Perkins conceded his timing was off, while Lolley took a swing at his critics – quite literally – imitating his impeccable skill on the links after netting the opener in Sydney FC’s 4-2 win.

STAT *******: At 17, centre-back Dylan Leonard became the youngest goalscorer in Western *******’s short history when he made good on an inch-perfect corner from Ben Garuccio in the 60th minute. When he was given his marching orders in the final minutes for a challenge on Cristian Caideo, Leonard overtook Apostolos Stamatelopoulos as the youngest player in ALM history to be red-carded and score a goal in the same game.

BEAT THAT: Just when questions were being asked of Central Coast’s championship defence, the injury-hit Mariners scored their first win of the season – a 2-1 come-from-behind win over bitter rivals the Newcastle Jets. The win is the first step to retaining the resplendent F3 derby trophy for another season.

UNDER PRESSURE: Brisbane are the only team who have not registered a competition point after five rounds. Their 3-2 defeat to Adelaide ******* marked their fourth loss from as many games, with coach Ruben Zadkovich lamenting a slow start to the second half in which the Reds equalised within 40 seconds.

UP NEXT: Adelaide ******* will ****** to keep their unbeaten start to the season alive when they host a Perth Glory outfit still chasing their first win. Auckland FC are back at home against Newcastle, who are seeking to bounce back from derby disappointment at Unite Round. Fresh off the bye, Melbourne City welcome Western Sydney to AAMI Park. Macarthur FC have the chance to heap more pressure on Brisbane before Western ******* host Melbourne Victory.

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#Barbarouses #stars #Nix #WSW #coach #blasts #Mata #agent

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