Bentleigh Greens come into the Westfield FFA Cup Quarter-Finals on the back of two away wins to both Blacktown City and Sydney Olympic respectively, and will be relishing the chance to host their first home clash of the competition at Kingston Heath.
On the contrary, NPL South Australia side Adelaide City will be playing their first away game after two home fixtures against Hyundai A-League side Western Sydney Wanderers and Brisbane Strikers.
Both sides finished in the top half of their respective NPL sectors, with Bentleigh finishing in fourth position in NPLV, and City in fifth position in NPLSA and the NPL season finished, both sides have continued their usual training regime in an attempt to be at their best for the contest.
City have played two trial matches since their 1-0 victory over Brisbane Strikers in the Round of 16, winning one against an Adelaide United Youth League side and claiming a 1-1 draw against an Adelaide United senior squad.
The Greens will come into the Quarter Final with just six senior players remaining from the start of their NPL campaign in 2014, making their FFA Cup run all the more impressive.
With Adelaide’s “giant-killer” label – following a 1-0 victory over the Wanderers in the Round of 32 – they’ll be a tough side to beat and Greens coach John Anastasiadis has claimed his side are the underdogs heading into the match.
It could have been a much harder task for both sides as five A-League sides took part in the Quarter-Final draw, and both the Greens and City will fancy themselves as a realistic chance of making the Semi’s in their debut FFA Cup campaign.
Thomas Love will be the man for the Greens to watch, with his wonder-goal against the Wanderers one of the highlights of the competition.
Love has looked dangerous on a number of occasions from right midfield and will be a crucial cog in the Adelaide City side.
Another man for the Greens to keep an eye on will be Anthony Costa.
Costa’s first half strike against the Strikers was enough to send City through to the Quarter’s, and will cause any defence in the competition trouble if given too much space on the ball.
The Greens have a number of dangerous players, but the inclusion of Luke Gallo will be crucial to the success of the side.
Gallo was given clearance by Melbourne City to play in this game, and his inclusion will be even more imperative to the squad’s success due to the recent departure of Greens star Ryan de Vries.
Another important inclusion for Bentleigh will be full-back Christian Cavallo.
Cavallo has been a critical player at the back for the Greens in their FFA Cup campaign to date, and with the defender exempt from Melbourne Victory duties for this match, he could prove the difference in keeping the City forwards quiet.
The key to picking a winner here could be down to who can break down the oppositions defence due to excellent opening games in that regard.
The Greens have only conceded the one goal late to Sydney Olympic, while City are yet to concede in the competition.
If both keepers are switched on and the defensive units of both sides stick strong, this game could be low scoring and go right to the wire.
But if the likes of Gallo and Costa fire up for their respective sides we could be in for a goal-fest at Kingston Heath.
Prediction: Bentleigh Greens 1-1 Adelaide City [ET: 2-1]