- Kwame Yeboah - 2', 80'
- Jamie Maclaren - 56' Pen, 90'+2'
- Josh Brillante - 73'
Jamie Maclaren wins A-League thriller for Melbourne City over Wesyern Sydney
An injury-time goal from Jamie Maclaren fired Melbourne City to a stunning 3-2 A-League win over Western Sydney.
The Wanderers looked headed for an upset early on Friday night when Kwame Yeboah found the net after just 90 seconds at Bankwest Stadium.
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Maclaren equalised after Western Sydney midfielder Pirmin Schwegler was controversially ruled to have dragged Denis Genreau in the box in the 55th minute.
Replays showed the contact was minimal between the pair.
The Wanderers' frustrations worsened when Josh Brillante netted in the 73rd minute, before Yeboah completed his double soon after to set up a thrilling finish.
And up stepped arguably the most in-form player in the league in Maclaren, who was found unmarked by Lachlan Wales in the second minute of injury time. The Socceroos' star drove his shot past the outstretched arms of Daniel Lopar, extending his remarkable goalscoring run to nine goals in four league games.
He also has 19 in his past 12 matches for club and country but, more importantly, has ensured City retain their spot at the top of the table.
Kickoff for the 12,078 crowd had been delayed by half-an-hour after the preceding W-League game was halted because of stormy conditions.
But the setback failed to stop Western Sydney making a blistering start, with new face Bruce Kamau producing an exquisite first-time cross for the opener.
Yeboah began the sequence by chesting down for Mitchell Duke, whose switch of play allowed Kamau to send it back across goal for Yeboah to finish.
City, however, were quick to recover from the early gut punch, controlling possession for most of the first half against a wasteful Wanderers midfield.
The only issue for the visitors was creating some genuine chances, with a Josh Brillante thunderbolt tipped over the bar being their only serious look at goal.
In contrast, Western Sydney were seemingly restricted to counter-attacks or flashes of brilliance from the returning Kamau.
The game was brought to life on Maclaren's penalty, and tensions rose further when Rostyn Griffiths lashed out after being penalised for a foul.
Maclaren appeared to have sewn up the win when he found Brillante soon after, only for Yeboah to finish Alexander Meier's header across goal.
But the City striker delivered again for the winner, consigning the Wanderers to back-to-back defeats for the first time this season.
Game Information
Australian A-League Men Standings
Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Melbourne Victory | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | +5 | 10 |
Melbourne City FC | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +5 | 9 |
Auckland FC | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +5 | 9 |
Wellington Phoenix FC | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +3 | 7 |
Adelaide United | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +2 | 7 |
Macarthur FC | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | +4 | 6 |
Sydney FC | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
Central Coast Mariners | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | -2 | 6 |
Western United | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
Western Sydney Wanderers | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | +1 | 4 |
Newcastle Jets | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -4 | 3 |
Perth Glory | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | -14 | 1 |
Brisbane Roar | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -5 | 0 |