2017–18 Melbourne Victory FC season

The 2017–18 Melbourne Victory FC season was the club's 13th season since its establishment in 2004. The club participated in the A-League for the 13th time, the FFA Cup for the fourth time, as well as the AFC Champions League for the sixth time.

Melbourne Victory
2017–18 season
ChairmanAnthony Di Pietro
ManagerKevin Muscat
StadiumAAMI Park & Etihad Stadium, Melbourne
A-League4th
A-League Finals SeriesChampions
FFA CupRound of 16
AFC Champions LeagueGroup stage
Top goalscorerLeague: Besart Berisha (13 goals)
All: Besart Berisha (18 goals)
Highest home attendance35,792 vs Melbourne City
(14 October 2017)
Lowest home attendance8,370 vs Central Coast Mariners
(6 January 2018)
Average home league attendance17,631

Players edit

Squad information edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   AUS Matt Acton
4 DF   AUS Rhys Williams
6 MF   AUS Leigh Broxham (vice-captain)
7 FW   AUS Kenny Athiu (on loan from Heidelberg United)
8 FW   KOS Besart Berisha
9 FW   NZL Kosta Barbarouses
10 FW   AUS James Troisi
11 FW   AUS Mitch Austin
14 DF   AUS Thomas Deng
15 MF   AUS Cameron McGilp
16 MF   AUS Josh Hope
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 DF   AUS James Donachie
18 MF   ARG Matías Sánchez
19 FW   AUS Pierce Waring
20 GK   AUS Lawrence Thomas
21 MF   AUS Carl Valeri (Captain)
22 MF   AUS Stefan Nigro
23 FW   NZL Jai Ingham
24 MF   AUS Terry Antonis
31 FW   AUS Christian Theoharous (Youth)
40 GK   AUS Matt Sutton (Scholarship)
41 FW   NED Leroy George

From youth squad edit

N
Pos.
Nat.
Name
Age
Notes
15 MF   Cameron McGilp 19 [1]
16 MF   Josh Hope 19 [1]
19 FW   Pierce Waring 18 [1]
40 GK   Matt Sutton 17 2.5 year scholarship contract[2]

Transfers in edit

No. Position Player Transferred from Type/fee Contract length Date Ref
4 DF Rhys Williams Perth Glory Free transfer 2 years 15 May 2017 [3]
14 DF Thomas Deng   Jong PSV Loan return 15 May 2017 [4]
9 FW   Kosta Barbarouses Free transfer 2 years 13 June 2017 [5]
5 MF Mark Milligan Free transfer 1 year 31 July 2017 [6]
18 MF   Matías Sánchez   Temperley Free transfer 1 year 16 August 2017 [7]
41 MF   Leroy George Free transfer 1 year 16 September 2017 [8]
7 FW Kenny Athiu   Heidelberg United Loan 1 year 13 October 2017 [9]
24 MF Terry Antonis Free transfer 2.5 years 3 January 2018 [10]
3 DF Dino Djulbic Injury replacement contract 2 weeks 3 January 2018 [10]

Transfers out edit

No. Position Player Transferred to Type/fee Date Ref
5 DF   Daniel Georgievski Newcastle Jets Free transfer 30 March 2017 [11]
14 FW   Fahid Ben Khalfallah End of contract 26 April 2017 [12]
16 MF Rashid Mahazi Retired 10 May 2017 [13]
4 DF Nick Ansell End of contract 12 May 2017 [14]
15 DF   Alan Baró End of contract 12 May 2017 [14]
19 FW George Howard End of contract 12 May 2017 [14]
27 GK Alastair Bray End of contract 12 May 2017 [14]
30 GK Lucas Spinella End of contract 12 May 2017 [14]
7 MF   Marco Rojas   Heerenveen Undisclosed 26 July 2017 [15]
3 DF Dino Djulbic End of contract 18 January 2018 [16]
5 MF Mark Milligan   Al-Ahli $1,000,000 28 January 2018 [17]
2 DF Jason Geria   JEF United Chiba $800,000 3 March 2018 [18]

Contract extensions edit

No. Name Position Duration Date Notes
40 Matt Acton Goalkeeper 1 year 16 May 2017 [19]
10 James Troisi Winger 2 years 26 July 2017 [20]
8   Besart Berisha Striker 1 year 21 December 2017 [21]
1 Matt Acton Goalkeeper 2 years 16 February 2018 [22]

Technical staff edit

Position Name
Manager   Kevin Muscat
Assistant manager   Jean-Paul de Marigny
Goalkeeping coach   Dean Anastasiadis
Youth Team Manager   Gareth Naven
Youth Team Assistant Manager   Vaughan Coveny
Youth Team Developmental Manager   Grant Brebner
Youth goalkeeping coach Vacant
Strength & Conditioning Coach   Anthony Crea
Physiotherapist   Travis Maude

Statistics edit

Squad statistics edit

N Pos. Nat. Name Total A-League A-League Finals Series FFA Cup AFC Champions League
Apps Goals       Apps Goals       Apps Goals       Apps Goals       Apps Goals      
1 GK   Matt Acton 4 0 0 0 0 2+1 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 1+0 0 0 0 0
4 DF   Rhys Williams 32 2 12 0 1 24+0 1 8 0 1 1+0 0 1 0 0 2+0 0 1 0 0 5+0 1 2 0 0
6 MF   Leigh Broxham 35 0 6 0 0 20+4 0 5 0 0 3+0 0 1 0 0 2+0 0 0 0 0 5+1 0 0 0 0
7 MF   Kenny Athiu 11 2 0 0 0 0+4 1 0 0 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 1+4 1 0 0 0
8 FW   Besart Berisha 35 18 2 0 0 25+0 13 1 0 0 3+0 1 1 0 0 2+0 2 0 0 0 5+0 2 0 0 0
9 FW   Kosta Barbarouses 32 12 3 0 1 22+0 8 2 0 1 3+0 2 0 0 0 2+0 0 0 0 0 5+0 2 1 0 0
10 FW   James Troisi 32 5 8 0 0 21+1 3 6 0 0 3+0 1 1 0 0 2+0 1 1 0 0 5+0 0 0 0 0
11 FW   Mitch Austin 7 2 1 1 0 3+2 1 1 1 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 2+0 1 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
14 DF   Thomas Deng 29 2 6 0 0 20+1 2 5 0 0 3+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 4+1 0 1 0 0
15 MF   Cameron McGilp 2 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 0 0 0
16 MF   Josh Hope 12 0 2 0 0 0+5 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+2 0 1 0 0 2+3 0 1 0 0
17 DF   James Donachie 23 0 4 0 0 10+2 0 2 0 0 3+0 0 1 0 0 2+0 0 1 0 0 6+0 0 0 0 0
18 MF   Matías Sánchez 25 0 8 0 0 14+8 0 6 0 0 0+3 0 2 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
19 FW   Pierce Waring 2 1 0 0 0 0+1 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 1+0 1 0 0 0
20 GK   Lawrence Thomas 35 0 1 0 0 25+0 0 1 0 0 3+0 0 0 0 0 2+0 0 0 0 0 5+0 0 0 0 0
21 MF   Carl Valeri 33 0 10 0 0 23+2 0 6 0 0 3+0 0 1 0 0 1+0 0 0 0 0 4+0 0 3 0 0
22 MF   Stefan Nigro 23 0 2 0 0 10+6 0 1 0 0 2+0 0 0 0 0 1+1 0 0 0 0 3+0 0 1 0 0
23 FW   Jai Ingham 25 1 0 0 0 6+14 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 1+2 1 0 0 0
24 MF   Terry Antonis 22 1 5 0 0 10+4 0 2 0 0 3+0 1 1 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 5+0 0 2 0 0
25 MF   Birkan Kirdar 1 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 0 0 0
26 MF   Nicholas Sette 0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
27 DF   Callum Goulding 0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
30 GK   Stephen Hatzikourtis 0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
31 FW   Christian Theoharous 24 1 1 0 0 2+14 1 1 0 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 1+5 0 0 0 0
40 GK   Matt Sutton 0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
41 MF   Leroy George 34 12 4 0 0 24+2 8 4 0 0 3+0 1 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 5+0 3 0 0 0
Players no longer at the club:
2 DF   Jason Geria 25 0 4 1 0 20+1 0 3 1 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 2+0 0 1 0 0 2+0 0 0 0 0
3 DF   Dino Djulbic 3 0 0 0 0 3+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0
5 MF   Mark Milligan 15 4 2 0 1 12+1 3 1 0 1 0+0 0 0 0 0 2+0 1 1 0 0 0+0 0 0 0 0

Pre-season and friendlies edit

25 July 2017 Port Melbourne   0–3   Melbourne Victory Melbourne, Australia
19:30 AEST Report
Stadium: SS Anderson Reserve

Competitions edit

Overall edit

Competition Started round Final
position / round
First match Last match
A-League 4th 7 October 2017 14 April 2018
A-League Finals Elimination-finals Champions 22 April 2018 5 May 2018
FFA Cup Round of 32 Round of 16 9 August 2017 23 August 2017
AFC Champions League Group stage Group stage 13 February 2018 18 April 2018

A-League edit

League table edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Sydney FC 27 20 4 3 64 22 +42 64 Qualification for 2019 AFC Champions League group stage and Finals series
2 Newcastle Jets 27 15 5 7 57 37 +20 50 Qualification for 2019 AFC Champions League second preliminary round and Finals series
3 Melbourne City 27 13 4 10 41 33 +8 43 Qualification for Finals series
4 Melbourne Victory (C) 27 12 5 10 43 37 +6 41 Qualification for 2019 AFC Champions League group stage and Finals series
5 Adelaide United 27 11 6 10 36 38 −2 39 Qualification for Finals series
6 Brisbane Roar 27 10 5 12 33 39 −6 35
7 Western Sydney Wanderers 27 8 9 10 38 47 −9 33
8 Perth Glory 27 10 2 15 36 50 −14 32
9 Wellington Phoenix[a] 27 5 6 16 31 55 −24 21
10 Central Coast Mariners 27 4 8 15 28 49 −21 20
Source: A-Leagues
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions
Notes:
  1. ^ Wellington Phoenix cannot qualify for the AFC Champions League as they are not recognised as an AFC club.


Results summary edit

Overall Home Away
Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts W D L GF GA GD W D L GF GA GD
27 12 5 10 43 37  +6 41 6 3 5 25 20  +5 6 2 5 18 17  +1

Last updated: 13 April 2018.
Source: ultimatealeague.com

Results by round edit

Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627
GroundHHAAHHAAAHAAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHA
ResultLLDDDDWLWLWWWDLWWLLLWWWLWWW
Position897879686755355444554434444
Updated to match(es) played on 15 April 2018. Source: ultimatealeague.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches edit

7 October 2017 1 Melbourne Victory 0–1 Sydney FC Melbourne
19:50 AEDT Report
Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 24,804
Referee: Kris Griffiths-Jones
14 October 2017 2 Melbourne Victory 1–2 Melbourne City Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 35,792
Referee: Peter Green
20 October 2017 3 Adelaide United 2–2 Melbourne Victory Adelaide
19:20 ACDT
  • Lia   23', 62'
Report
Stadium: Adelaide Oval
Attendance: 19,416
Referee: Shaun Evans
29 October 2017 4 Central Coast Mariners 1–1 Melbourne Victory Gosford
19:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Central Coast Stadium
Attendance: 5,519
Referee: Adam Fielding
6 November 2017 5 Melbourne Victory 1–1 Western Sydney Wanderers Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 21,577
Referee: Peter Green
11 November 2017 6 Melbourne Victory 1–1 Brisbane Roar Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 18,098
Referee: Kris Griffiths-Jones
19 November 2017 7 Perth Glory 0–2 Melbourne Victory Perth
16:00 AWST Report
Stadium: nib Stadium
Attendance: 13,565
Referee: Jonathan Barreiro
23 November 2017 8 Newcastle Jets 4–1 Melbourne Victory Newcastle
19:50 AEDT
Report Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 8,427
Referee: Stephan Lucas
3 December 2017 9 Wellington Phoenix 2–3 Melbourne Victory Wellington
16:30 NZDT
Report
Stadium: Westpac Stadium
Attendance: 5,765
Referee: Alex King
8 December 2017 10 Melbourne Victory 1–2 Adelaide United Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Etihad Stadium
Attendance: 16,778
Referee: Kurt Ams
17 December 2017 11 Brisbane Roar 1–2 Melbourne Victory Brisbane
18:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: Suncorp Stadium
Attendance: 10,225
Referee: Peter Green
23 December 2017 12 Melbourne City 0–1 Melbourne Victory Melbourne
19:50 AEDT Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 22,515
Referee: Jarred Gillett
29 December 2017 13 Melbourne Victory 2–1 Newcastle Jets Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 15,534
Referee: Chris Beath
6 January 2018 14 Melbourne Victory 1–1 Central Coast Mariners Geelong
18:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 8,370
Referee: Jonathan Barreiro
10 January 2018 15 Wellington Phoenix 2–1 Melbourne Victory Wellington
19:35 NZDT
Report
Stadium: Westpac Stadium
Attendance: 5,105
Referee: Matthew Conger
13 January 2018 16 Melbourne Victory 3–2 Perth Glory Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 14,332
Referee: Shaun Evans
19 January 2018 17 Western Sydney Wanderers 0–3 Melbourne Victory Sydney
19:50 AEDT Report
Stadium: ANZ Stadium
Attendance: 11,864
Referee: Adam Kersey
26 January 2018 18 Melbourne Victory 1–3 Sydney FC Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 21,037
Referee: Jarred Gillett
3 February 2018 19 Newcastle Jets 2–0 Melbourne Victory Newcastle
17:35 AEDT
Report Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 11,473
Referee: Shaun Evans
9 February 2018 20 Melbourne Victory 1–2 Brisbane Roar Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 14,576
Referee: Chris Beath
24 February 2018 21 Melbourne Victory 3–0 Adelaide United Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 13,396
Referee: Alex King
2 March 2018 22 Melbourne City 1–2 Melbourne Victory Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 20,083
Referee: Kris Griffiths-Jones
18 March 2018 23 Melbourne Victory 5–2 Central Coast Mariners Melbourne
17:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 14,076
Referee: Jarred Gillett
31 March 2018 25 Melbourne Victory 3–1 Western Sydney Wanderers Melbourne
19:50 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 15,280
Referee: Shaun Evans
8 April 2018 26 Melbourne Victory 2–1 Wellington Phoenix Melbourne
17:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 13,182
Referee: Jarred Gillett
13 April 2018 27 Sydney FC 1–0 Melbourne Victory Sydney
19:50 AEST
Report Stadium: Allianz Stadium
Attendance: 15,567
Referee: Chris Beath

Finals series edit

22 April 2018 Elimination-final Melbourne Victory 2–1 Adelaide United Melbourne
18:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 15,502
Referee: Chris Beath
28 April 2018 Semi-final Sydney FC 2–3 (a.e.t.) Melbourne Victory Sydney
19:50 AEST
Report
Stadium: Allianz Stadium
Attendance: 17,775
Referee: Kurt Ams

FFA Cup edit

9 August 2017 Round of 32 Brisbane Roar   1–5   Melbourne Victory Brisbane
19:30 AEST
Report
Stadium: Perry Park
Attendance: 3,184
Referee: Chris Beath
23 August 2017 Round of 16 Adelaide United   3–0   Melbourne Victory Adelaide
19:00 ACST
Report Stadium: Marden Sports Complex
Attendance: 3,342
Referee: Jonathan Barreiro

AFC Champions League edit

Group stage edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Shanghai SIPG 6 3 2 1 10 6 +4 11 Advance to knockout stage
2   Ulsan Hyundai 6 2 3 1 15 11 +4 9
3   Melbourne Victory 6 2 2 2 11 16 −5 8
4   Kawasaki Frontale 6 0 3 3 6 9 −3 3
Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
13 February 2018 1 Melbourne Victory   3–3   Ulsan Hyundai Melbourne, Australia
19:30 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
Attendance: 5,127
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
20 February 2018 2 Shanghai SIPG   4–1   Melbourne Victory Shanghai, China
20:00 CST
Report
Stadium: Shanghai Stadium
Attendance: 16,697
Referee: Ali Sabah (Iraq)
4 April 2018 5 Ulsan Hyundai   6–2   Melbourne Victory Ulsan, South Korea
19:00 KST
Report
Stadium: Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium
Attendance: 834
Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)
18 April 2018 6 Melbourne Victory   2–1   Shanghai SIPG Melbourne, Australia
20:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
Attendance: 7,148
Referee: Mohammed Al-Khudairi (Saudi Arabia)

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Young guns go pro". Melbourne Victory. 19 September 2017. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  2. ^ "Victory signs Sutton as scholarship player". Melbourne Victory. 2 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Williams signs two-year Melbourne Victory deal". The World Game. SBS. 15 May 2017.
  4. ^ Tito, Clement (15 May 2017). "Deng could strengthen Victory's defence..." FourFourTwo. Archived from the original on 21 June 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  5. ^ "Kosta Barbarouses returns to Melbourne Victory after Phoenix release". Stuff.co.nz. 13 June 2017.
  6. ^ "Melbourne Victory confirm Milligan return on marquee return". The World Game. SBS. 31 July 2017.
  7. ^ "Victory sign Argentinean midfielder Matias Sanchez". FourFourTwo. 16 August 2017.
  8. ^ "Muscat brings Dutchman George to Victory". The World Game. SBS. 16 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Victory confirm Athiu signing". FourFourTwo. 13 October 2017. Archived from the original on 13 October 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  10. ^ a b "Victory sign Antonis and Djulbic". The World Game. SBS. 3 January 2018.
  11. ^ Gardiner, James (30 March 2017). "A-League: Newcastle Jets sign Daniel Georgievski from Melbourne Victory". The Newcastle Herald.
  12. ^ "Fahid Ben Khalfallah set to leave Melbourne Victory". ESPN FC. 26 April 2017.
  13. ^ Davutovic, David; Windley, Matt (10 May 2017). "Studs Up: Rashid Mahazi to quit football as Rhys Williams move to Melbourne Victory looms". Herald Sun.
  14. ^ a b c d e "Khalfallah heads massive Victory exodus". FourFourTwo. 12 May 2017.
  15. ^ "All Whites midfielder Marco Rojas signs with Dutch club SC Heerenveen". Stuff.co.nz. 26 July 2017.
  16. ^ Pollock, Tom (18 January 2018). "Deng in the mix for Wanderers clash". Melbourne Victory.
  17. ^ Bossi, Dominic (28 January 2018). "Melbourne Victory agree to sell Mark Milligan to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  18. ^ Lynch, Michael (3 March 2018). "Melbourne Victory get mojo back with derby win as Jason Geria farewells A-League". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  19. ^ "Matt Acton extends Victory stay". Melbourne Victory. 16 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 June 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  20. ^ Windley, Matt; Davutovic, David (26 July 2017). "James Troisi set to re-sign with Melbourne Victory after almost moving to arch-rivals". Herald Sun.
  21. ^ "Berisha pens Victory extension". FourFourTwo. 21 December 2017. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  22. ^ "Acton signs on for two more years". Melbourne Victory. 16 February 2018.
Notes

External links edit