The A-League is back with another packed schedule of fixtures this weekend after serving up a draw-fest in Round 14.
With eight teams sharing the points last weekend, all clubs will be scrapping hard this matchday to push their case for a top six berth.
Check out our Matchday 15 preview and A-League betting tips below, courtesy of Josh Nevett.
A-League Round 15 Betting Tips Preview & Betting Tips
Melbourne Victory vs Wellington Phoenix
Friday 3rd February, 7.45pm (AEDT)
Melbourne Victory sits dead last on the A-League table after 14 rounds, and things won’t get any easier this Friday.
Wellington will travel to Melbourne in hot form, having won three of their last four matches.
Only a red card to Tim Payne prevented the Phoenix from making it four on the trot, and they are now well-primed for a finals appearance.
On the other hand, the Victory have not saluted in their last five games and will be incredibly low on confidence after giving up a lead to arch-rivals Sydney FC as they went down 2-1.
These teams have traded blows in recent years, both taking three wins from their last six encounters, but nearly every game has been one-sided.
Looking ahead to Friday, Wellington are in far superior touch and should have too much scoring power for the impotent Victory.
Wellington Phoenix
$3.20 (2 Units)
Melbourne City FC vs Macarthur
Saturday 4th February, 5.00pm (AEDT)
Despite sitting five points clear at the top of the table, Melbourne City have fallen into a rut recently.
The ladder leaders have recorded three consecutive draws, but they are still rightful title favourites as the season edges toward its climax.
City have quality right across the pitch – Melbourne have conceded the least goals (11) in the league while also scoring the second most (27).
Conversely, Macarthur have struggled to stand out from the pack. The Bulls have gone three games without a win and will head to AAMI Park as clear outsiders.
The history supports this – City have won four of the last five matches between these two sides.
As such, it’s hard to see the Bulls taking points off the flying City on their home turf.
Melbourne City
$1.42 (3 Units)
Sydney FC vs Central Coast Mariners
Saturday 4th February, 5.00pm (AEDT)
The rivalry between Sydney FC and Central Coast will reignite on Saturday evening, with the former entering this clash as the punters pick.
While the Sky Blues are the favourites, the Mariners have fared far better in 2022-23 so far, sitting second on the table with seven wins to their name.
Central Coast have thrived thanks to their trademark attacking style of play – the Mariners have tallied a league-leading 29 goals so far.
Therefore, it’s hard to explain why Sydney have been so well backed for this game.
The Sky Blues have won just one of their last four games, and one of their last three against the Mariners.
As such, I’m predicting an entertaining clash that will ultimately result in a high-scoring draw.
Adelaide United vs Brisbane Roar
Saturday 4th February, 7.45pm (AEDT)
Adelaide United faced the toughest task in the A-League last weekend when they travelled to Melbourne to take on City. They were able to put in a good account of themselves in their 3-3 draw to make it three games in a row unbeaten.
A return to form for the Reds was necessary after they lost three of four between Rounds 8-11, and they now find themselves only three points behind the second-placed Mariners.
Meanwhile, Brisbane Roar are in the worst form of their campaign having collected just one point from their last four outings.
A 4-0 drubbing against the then ninth-placed Jets shows us exactly where they’re at right now.
Adelaide have form and home ground on their side for this encounter. With that said, the price for them to secure all three points is more than fair in my opinion, making them one of the better bets of the round.
Adelaide United
$2.05 (2.5 Units)
Perth Glory vs Newcastle Jets
Saturday 4th February, 10:30pm (AEDT)
Perth Glory have all of the sudden become one of the toughest assignments in the A-League.
After years of dwindling down the bottom, Glory have stamped themselves as a finals contender this season, spurred by a five-game unbeaten run.
Glory have scored 2+ goals in four straight games, which is a big turnaround in the front half after being held scoreless in four of their first nine outings.
Similarly, the Jets come into this fixture in rich goalscoring form after putting four past the Roar last weekend. It was their highest output of the season to date and just their second clean sheet.
Both of these teams are a lot better going forward than they are defending, which should make for an entertaining affair.
Take the ‘overs’ in this one.
Over 2.5 Goals
$2.10 (2 Units)
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Western United
Sunday 5th February, 3.00pm (AEDT)
The Wanderers continue to stack up the draws and made it three in a row when they finished up 2-2 against the Mariners last weekend.
They’ve now won only one of their last eight fixtures despite playing some good football over those couple of months.
Likewise, Western United have found wins hard to come by this season in what’s been a tough attempt of a title defence to date.
Still, the signs have been better for the champs in recent weeks having lost only one fixture since Round 7.
These teams come into this matchup in similar form, but it’s United who have the higher upside in my opinion. I’m happy to have a swing on them at odds for one unit to close out the round.
Western United
$3.30 (1 Unit)
