It is a battle of top against bottom as leaders Melbourne City host basement boys Newcastle Jets in an A-League fixture at AAMI Park. The hosts have been in good form at home and should make light work of the struggling visitors.
Melbourne City were held to a 1-1 draw by Macarthur in their previous A-League fixture. Connor Metcalfe gave them the lead after the restart but were pegged back midway through the second half.
Patrick Kisnorbo’s men continue to set the pace in the A-League and sit one point clear at the top of the table. They are the leading scorers in the league this season and also among the best defences.
Melbourne City are usually solid at AAMI Park, where they have won their last five matches. They have kept clean sheets in three of the last four fixtures in that run and triumphed 7-0 over Melbourne Victory in their previous home fixture.
Newcastle Jets travel to AAMI Park off the back of a 2-0 defeat at Western United last time out. They were second best throughout the contest and barely troubled the Western United backline.
Craig Deans’ men are one of the worst teams in the A-League this season with just three wins in the entire campaign. They have scored the fewest goals in the league and are rooted to the bottom of the table.
Newcastle Jets head into Thursday’s match off the back of eight defeats in their last 10 matches. They are also winless in their last five away matches, suffering four defeats in that run.
How the bookies view it
Melbourne City are overwhelming favourites among the bookies and are priced at 33/100 by novibet to win. Bet365 is offering 11/1 for an unlikely victory for Newcastle Jets while a draw is set at odds of 26/5 by SBK.
Given Melbourne City’s impressive record at AAMI Park, a comfortable home win looks to be on the cards.
Head to head
Melbourne City have the edge in this fixture with 16 wins from 33 previous matches. Newcastle Jets have claimed 13 victories while both teams have battled to four draws.
Newcastle Jets claimed a 1-0 victory when both teams met in February while Melbourne City triumphed 2-0 in the last meeting at AAMI Park.
Players to watch
Jamie McLaren has been in superb form for Melbourne City all season with 19 goals to his name. He is priced at 2/5 by bet365 to score anytime while the first goal is valued at 21/10 by the same firm.
Given Newcastle Jets’ attacking problems, Melbourne City are likely to be untroubled at the back on Thursday. Centre backs Nuno Reis and Curtis Good have helped the team to three clean sheets in their last four home matches and will be hoping for a repeat at 5/4 with Sporting Index.
Anything else catch the eye?
Melbourne City are excellent going forward and could be backed in the -1 handicap market at 41/50 with novibet. A win to nil could also be on the cards at 7/5 with Sporting Index.
Jamie McLaren has a knack for scoring multiple goals and could be backed to grab two or more on Thursday at 13/8 with bet365. Melbourne City are also likely to score in both halves at 3/4 with Sporting Index.
This A League match between Melbourne City and Newcastle Jets will be played on Apr 29, 2021 and kick off at 10:05. Check below for our tipsters best Melbourne City vs Newcastle Jets prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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