Melbourne City secured a 2-1 victory over Central Coast Mariners at AAMI Park, catapulting them into the playoff spots of the Isuzu UTE A-League.
Andreas Kuen was the first to strike, capitalising on a mix-up involving Nathan Paull, before Andrew Nabbout sealed the win with a second goal. Ali Auglah netted a late consolation for the visitors.
This result sees Melbourne City rise from eighth to sixth place, nudging Macarthur out of the playoff contention, while Central Coast remain in ninth, four points adrift of the top six.
Daniel Arzani started brightly, delivering an enticing cross within the first ten minutes, but both Max Caputo and Elbasan Rashani failed to convert the opportunity.
The deadlock was broken in the 22nd minute when Kuen surged through the midfield, benefiting from Paull’s unfortunate slip. His shot took a deflection off the post, evading a desperate dive from Andrew Redmayne.
Arzani continued to impress in the first half, forcing Redmayne into action shortly after the opening goal with a well-struck volley. Just two minutes later, he connected with Kuen’s clever flick, but his first-time shot sailed past the post.
The second half was in dire need of goal-scoring opportunities, and Melbourne City answered the call in the 67th minute. A series of slick passes culminated in Arzani, who feinted before setting up Nabbout, who then unleashed a powerful shot into the top corner from within the area.
In the dying moments of stoppage time, Sabit Ngor found himself behind a complacent Melbourne City defence and squared the ball to Ali Auglah, who tapped in for a late consolation for Central Coast.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
WHAT THEY SAID
Daniel Arzani
Warren Moon
Compiled by SportArena.au
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