Liberty’s Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week: Midfield Wizard Leaves His Stamp

Get the latest updates on the Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week, brought to you by Opta.

The 2025-26 season of the Isuzu UTE A-League provided fans with an action-packed weekend filled with excitement and drama.

In Round 25, the Newcastle Jets secured their maiden Isuzu UTE A-League Premiership after a 2-2 draw against Melbourne Victory turned out to be crucial, especially with Auckland FC suffering a surprising 1-0 defeat at home to Central Coast Mariners.

This week’s standout performer was Adelaide United’s midfield dynamo Anselmo de Moraes, who shone in The Reds’ 3-1 victory over Macarthur Bulls at Coopers Stadium.

This season, the Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week is powered by Opta Points, a detailed player metric that assesses a player’s overall contribution to the match. Each Monday, fans can look forward to the Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week displayed in a 4-3-3 formation, highlighting the top performers.

*Note from the Editor: The Team of the Week includes matches played from Monday to Sunday, and some teams might have played more than once during that period.

Anselmo is joined in this penultimate Team of the Week for the regular season by his Adelaide United teammates Bart Vriends and Panagiotis Kikianis, both of whom put in solid defensive performances in the victory against Macarthur.

Also making the backline are Sydney FC’s fullback Jordan Courtney-Perkins and Brisbane Roar’s defender Youstin Salas, the latter noted for scoring a stunning goal despite the loss to Melbourne City.

HE SAID WHAT? Every word from your Isuzu UTE A-League coach following Round 25

Brazilian sensation Anselmo was the top scorer this week with a brilliant brace at Coopers Stadium and takes his position in midfield alongside two Socceroos: Denis Genreau of Melbourne Victory and Paul Okon-Engstler from Sydney FC.

Up front, Newcastle Jets’ Eli Adams makes the cut after netting the crucial goals that led Newcastle to the Premiers Plate, alongside Melbourne Victory’s Charles Nduka, who also scored two in the same match. Completing the forward line is young talent Marcus Younis from Melbourne City, who scored twice in their 3-2 triumph over Brisbane.

This week’s goalkeeper is none other than Central Coast Mariners standout Andrew Redmayne, who was instrumental in his side’s 1-0 win against Auckland FC.

MATCH REPORT: Adelaide aiming for a top-two finish as the brilliant Brazilian dominates the Bulls

Opta Points is a system where players earn points based on various on-field actions. Typically, players who play the entire match accumulate between 10 to 40 points. (See the complete breakdown of Opta Points below).

Understanding: Opta’s Team of the Week through Opta Points

The scoring mechanism differentiates between field players and goalkeepers, awarding the same points for similar actions. A unique aspect of this system is its focus on on-field performance, with no points allocated for post-match achievements like winning a game or additional points for keeping a clean sheet.

Positive actions (goals, passes, tackles, etc.) contribute to a player’s score, while negative actions (cards, own goals, goals conceded) detract from it. In principle, a player’s points can be limitless, and they could finish a match with a negative score. However, players who complete the full match generally find themselves accumulating between 10 and 40 points.

Goals, shots on target, shots off target, blocked shots, own goals, assists, passes, crosses, tackles, interceptions, fouls won, fouls conceded, offsides, yellow cards, red cards, goals conceded, penalties won, and saves are all accounted for in the Opta Points system.