Wellington Phoenix vs. Melbourne City – A-League, April 5, 2021

Melbourne City’s six-game winning streak was finally brought to an end by Western United on Thursday. However, Patrick Kisnorbo’s men have the opportunity to get back on track against struggling Wellington on Monday, April 5.

The Nix have only managed to win one of their last four matches, leaving them third from bottom on the A-League ladder. On the flip side, City is nine points ahead in third place.

In this Wellington Phoenix vs. Melbourne City betting preview, I look at the bookmakers’ odds and share my prediction and pick.

Fresh from crushing Melbourne Victory 4-1, Wellington would have been confident of causing Macarthur plenty of problems last weekend.

In fairness, the Nix dominated large spells of their meeting with the Bulls – enjoying the majority of possession, as well as registering 13 shots. But Macarthur eventually scraped a 1-0 win, despite Wellington’s supremacy.

It’s fair to say that last weekend’s result sums up Phoenix’s season perfectly. Ufuk Talay’s men have pushed their opponents close on numerous occasions, yet they have ultimately fallen short far too often.

With just four wins from 14 matches this term, Wellington’s dreams of emulating last year’s third-place finish are fading fast. The Kiwis are already 14 points behind first-place Central Coast and only seven points off the bottom.

The club captain has bagged five goals and two assists this season, but his team-mates must start chipping in, too.

Let’s be honest – nobody really expected Western United to beat City, did they? Okay, maybe a handful of optimistic Green & Black supporters backed their team on Thursday. Yet, betting against City just didn’t feel like an option, at least in my eyes.

Despite taking the lead after just 12 minutes through Craig Noone, Kisnorbo’s men threw away their advantage and lost 2-1.

As well as dominating possession at AAMI Park, City racked up a whopping 27 shots. But Jamie Maclaren – who already has 12 goals and five assists to his name this season – was unable to spark a comeback for his side.

Looking at the bigger picture, Kisnorbo’s men have won eight of their 13 matches this term – including six of their previous seven. With that in mind, City will be confident of returning to winning ways on Monday.

It is important to remember that City has won eight of the last 12 meetings between these two sides.

City may have suffered a minor hiccup last time out, but it is very difficult to argue with the odds for this game. 10bet views Kisnorbo’s side as the clear favorite, leaving Wellington as the rank outsider.

When you couple City’s record in this fixture with the team’s recent performances, all the signs point towards the away win.

This match provides City with the perfect chance to return to winning ways. Let’s not forget that Kisnorbo’s men have won six of their last seven games – scoring a frightening 21 goals in the process.

The Nix are likely to make life difficult for the visitors on Monday, but I just can’t see the hosts getting anything from this match. Given City’s recent form, odds of 1.66 are actually pretty good.