{"id":324698,"date":"2025-03-07T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-07T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wellingtonphoenix.com\/?p=324698"},"modified":"2025-03-07T15:54:25","modified_gmt":"2025-03-07T02:54:25","slug":"isuzu-ute-a-league-round-22-match-preview-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wellingtonphoenix.com\/news\/isuzu-ute-a-league-round-22-match-preview-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Isuzu UTE A-League Round 22 Match Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A crucial away day looms for the Phoenix against the high-flying Western United.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Head coach Giancarlo Italiano is upbeat about the game despite a recent sticky patch of form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYeah, I\u2019m feeling really good,\u201d he told media on Friday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTraining was pretty good today, it\u2019s been really productive all week, and again, for a team that\u2019s on the wrong side of results at the moment, the group vibe\u2019s good. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been part of some environments where things aren\u2019t going well and it can get toxic, but it\u2019s probably the complete opposite in this group. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a good thing because there\u2019s a lot of belief in the group, they want to prove a lot of people wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe just keep talking about one performance, one result, and we can turn our season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team feel they are close to finding that breakthrough without any radical alterations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: Photomac\/Cam McIntosh<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNothing changes in my thinking. We all believe that it\u2019s the best way going forward, it\u2019s just a matter of getting the right personnel, cohesion, team chemistry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf we thought we were fundamentally off, we would change it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think we\u2019ve changed much from the last 12 weeks. We\u2019ve defended the same, built up the same.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve just got more of a grounding for the players to understand where they\u2019re at.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That reflects the steady mentality the coaching staff have adopted throughout the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think we do too much different whether we win or we lose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe players don\u2019t want an authoritarian leader, they want a bit of guidance, and that\u2019s what we try to do when things are going rough like they are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen things are going well we\u2019re the same. We don\u2019t change the tune. If we\u2019re emotional, then it gives the players an excuse to be emotional.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second-placed Western United have been the surprise package of this A-League season, and Italiano forecasts a tough game for the Nix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: Photomac\/Cam McIntosh<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think I said it in round 1, and everyone laughed at me, but I said they\u2019d be up there. In all the pre-season friendlies I saw I thought they were really good. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey had a bit of a similar process to us last year, where they ended up coming last but they blooded a lot of young players that came in. This year it\u2019s gelled quite nicely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJohn Aloisi is a good coach as well, he\u2019s won the league, so they can lean on his experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor me they\u2019re just a good unit, they attack well in transition. Defensively they\u2019re very rigid and hard to break down.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even so, he believes that an improvement in attack can see the Phoenix come away with a positive result. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe most important thing when it comes to attacking is understanding cohesion, recognition of where players will be at all times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think what\u2019s happened is there\u2019s been an overreliance on Kosta, and it\u2019s made it easier for teams to defend him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen he\u2019s not getting the service, it\u2019s more about getting players in those areas where they can be effective and provide those creative outlets for him. That comes down to team chemistry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: Photomac\/Cam McIntosh<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe advantage I had last year was that I came into the team, already knew the players, it wasn\u2019t hard to make them gel. This season we\u2019ve had a massive turnover in the squad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s more about their understanding and movements with each other. The more games we play, we believe that they\u2019ll get better with their combination and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen you have a lot of injuries, and you\u2019re also relying on a lot of younger players, that can happen. It\u2019s more about time than anything.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the squad nearly back to full health, Italiano is close to being able to deploy his preferred lineup for the first time all season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few players, including Marco Rojas, are still on limited minutes as they continue their recoveries, but the side is shaping in the right direction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGod willing, with a bit of luck. There\u2019s no injuries, we\u2019ve got Marco back now faster than expected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIshige is coming back now, he\u2019s been carrying a couple of knocks over the last couple of months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt the moment there are some restrictions with players, but as we move on the restrictions will be less and less, but we\u2019re getting close to full fitness. I\u2019m looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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