Melbourne Victory head coach Kevin Muscat was happy to get all the points against a plucky Wellington Phoenix side on Monday, but challenged his team to maintain their form in the weeks to come.
The new boss saw the visitors almost overturn his side’s three goal lead, and aside from lamenting Victory’s poor ball control, credited Wellington for their endeavor to come back into a contest which seemed all but over after half an hour.
“I think we turned the ball over far too easy in the second half, and that wasn’t really happening in the first half,” Muscat said.
“When that happens you give them a little bit of confidence, and credit to them they had a go at us in the second half, and we could have scored a few more goals as well to seal the game.
“They gave us a good run for our money in the second half.”
The football that Victory played in the first 30 minutes was breathtaking, as they pried apart the Phoenix defence and made them pay for their mistakes.
Muscat believes that was some of the best football they have shown so far this season, but also felt that they still have to keep it up for a longer period of a game.
“I thought for especially the first half hour, was as good football as we have played,” he said.
“Going into the game it was all about getting three points and playing to some sort of standard and I thought we reached very, very high standards in that first 30-35 minutes.
“There were lots of positives, going forward in the first half there was some really, really good football.
“We’ve managed to do that this season in periods during games, now it’s about collectively getting that done for 90 minutes.
“We want to steadily improve and get better at what we do for longer.”
One of the players to star in the opening half hour was James Troisi, who scored his third and fourth goals in three games.
In praising Troisi, Muscat was quick to point out the attacking midfielder was becoming an important weapon in the Victory’s attacking cavalry.
“He was one that joined us a bit later,” he said.
“He’s had to understand and really have a look at the way we play but he’s certainly fitted in really well for us, and it just gives us an added dimension just getting goals from midfield as well.”
Another player Muscat was pleased with was central defender Pablo Contreras, who returned from suspension this week.
The Chilean marquee signing was as unfluttered and composed in defence as he was on his debut, and brought a bit of calm to a nervy Victory defence when the game looked to run away from them.
“He was good and again it’s only his second game,” Muscat said.
“We’re looking at James Troisi and saying four games in and he’s finding his feet and really looking dangerous.
“Pablo hasn’t had that luxury, tonight was his second game I thought he was good and he calmed things down when he needed to and put his foot on the ball, in possession he’s very for us as well.”
With his first game now in the past, Muscat is looking forward to coming up against Sydney as the whirlwind circumstances around the club abates for the first time in three weeks.
“It is a little bit of a relief because we’re hoping for a bit of normality now, get back into recovery and analysing Sydney and moving onto that game,” he said.
“I don’t know what their state is but I certainly know what our state will be next week when we play them.
“It is a shorter turnaround and that won’t be used as an excuse we just have a little bit less time to prepare and analyse the opposition but we’ll certainly be ready for them.”