The A-League provided plenty of thrills and spills last weekend, with 20 goals scored across the six matches.
The drama is set to continue in Round 9, another edition of the ‘Melbourne Derby’ headlining this week’s schedule.
Check out our ‘Matchday 9’ preview and A-League betting tips below.
A-League Round 9 Betting Tips
Brisbane Roar vs Central Coast Mariners
Thursday 21st December, 7.45pm (AEDT)
Surprisingly, it’s the Roar that are the better placed of these two teams at this point in the season, sitting four spots above the reigning champions in fifth.
Brisbane have been on the right end of several tight results, while the opposite has been true of Central Coast who have managed just two wins with Christmas around the corner.
With that being said, the Mariners have lifted their output over the last month, getting closer to the form that took them all the way last season.
Therefore, Central Coast will enter this away fixture confident, especially considering that they have beaten Brisbane in four of the last five meetings between the teams.
With that in mind, I’m going to back the underdogs here.
Central Coast Mariners to Win
$2.60 (1 Unit)
Adelaide United vs Newcastle Jets
Friday 22nd December, 7.45pm (AEDT)
Adelaide and Newcastle have produced very similar levels of output so far this campaign, sitting seventh and eighth, respectively.
After a strong start to the season, Adelaide have lost four of their last five, while Newcastle have been relatively consistent over the first couple of months.
Recent encounters between these sides have fallen the way of Adelaide – United have won six of the last seven clashes.
Furthermore, the Reds usually play their best football at home – 2/3 victories this season have come on home turf.
So, while Adelaide’s form has been well below par, now is the time for them to turn it around in front of a passionate supporter base.
Adelaide United to Win
$1.80 (2 Units)
Wellington Phoenix vs Western Sydney Wanderers
Saturday 23rd December, 3.30pm (AEDT)
Wellington and Western Sydney have been two of the best teams in the competition so far this season, recording nine wins between them.
The Phoenix are top of the table, having lost just one game thanks to conceding seven goals, the least in the league.
The Wanderers have been equally miserly, letting in eight goals, so this game promises to be a battle of the defences.
Furthermore, both teams kept a clean sheet last weekend, so I’ll be focusing on the total goals market in this encounter.
With top spot on the line, I’m expecting this game to be light on goals, so the unders looks a value option.
Under 2.5 Goals
$2.14 (2 Units)
Sydney FC vs Western United
Saturday 23rd December, 5.30pm (AEDT)
Sydney FC were outworked and outclassed by Melbourne Victory last start, falling 3-0 on their travels to make it back-to-back losses without scoring.
Sydney have now failed to score in six of their eight matches this season, which is the worst mark in the competition.
Meanwhile, Wester United broke their six-game losing streak with a 2-1 home win against Brisbane Roar last outing.
United have also failed to score in five games this season and have a -10 goal difference in their last three road games.
This is a battle of two struggling sides, although home ground advantage makes Sydney the deserving favourites. They should be able to get the job done here.
Sydney FC to Win
$1.64 (1.5 Units)
Melbourne City vs Melbourne Victory
Saturday 23rd December, 7.45pm (AEDT)
Two Melbourne rivals will lock horns once more on Saturday night with Melbourne City playing hosts to Melbourne Victory.
City suffered a poor run of form early in their campaign but have responded with seven points from their last three matches.
In contrast, Victory have been on fire from the get-go and are unbeaten in eight league fixtures.
Victory were superb in their rivalry matchup with Sydney last weekend when thumping them 3-0 at home to make it back-to-back wins.
On current form, you simple can’t go past Victory at the underdog price, and they’re certainly worth having something on.
Melbourne Victory to Win
$2.85 (1 Unit)
Perth Glory vs Macarthur FC
Saturday 23rd December, 10.30pm (AEDT)
The last of four Saturday fixtures in Round 9 will have Perth Glory and Macarthur FC locking horns in Western Australia.
Glory recently put an end to a four-game losing run when playing out a 2-2 draw against the Jets, although their season win tally remains at just once.
Elsewhere, Macarthur suffered their first defeat of the season in Round 9 when they were beaten convincingly by Wellington 3-0.
Still, there’s plenty to like about the way Macarthur are playing this season and I’m willing to forgive their recent poor performance.
At near 3-1 odds, Macarthur look to be one of the best bets of the round to defeat an out-of-sorts Perth outfit.
Macarthur FC to Win
$2.75 (2 Units)
