Western United vs. Perth Glory – A-League, January 23, 2021

The Glory have finally opened their 2020/21 A-League account. But following Wednesday’s 5-3 demolition of Adelaide United, it’s safe to say that it was worth the wait.

Western United is Perth’s next assignment, with the Melbourne outfit having picked up just a single point from their opening two games of the season.

If you’re planning to wager on Saturday’s A-League clash, make sure you check out my Western United vs. Perth Glory prediction and betting pick below.

With home advantage on their side, Western United (2.40) is the favorite to win this matchup with the top online betting sites. But as you can see, the odds gaps in tight.

Perth Glory (2.80) will fancy their chances of securing at least a draw (3.55) after kicking off their campaign with an eye-catching victory earlier in the week.

I don’t think Mark Rudan would have been too disappointed following his side’s opening-day draw with Adelaide United. I mean, kicking off the season with a clean sheet is always nice.

However, having dominated large spells of their game against Melbourne City last weekend, Western United will probably feel like they deserved to come away from AAMI Park with something to show for their efforts.

Ivan Vujica gave the Green & Black the lead midway through the first half, although Craig Noone equalized shortly after. Rudan’s men continued to attack, but Jamie Maclaren netted the winning goal in 84 minutes.

Besart Berisha and Alessandro Diamanti are yet to get going this term. Of course, it is still early days. But we all know just how important the veterans are to the team.

Rudan strengthened his squad with a couple of new additions during the off-season, yet it still feels like Western United’s overreliance on Berisha and Diamanti is a slight problem.

THREE POINTS IN THE BAG BABY! ? pic.twitter.com/ggY2xH5s9D

— Perth Glory FC (@PerthGloryFC) January 20, 2021

Let’s be honest – most teams start the season with relatively uneventful encounters. Managers usually want to avoid opening their account with a loss, meaning we often see low-scoring games with very few goalscoring opportunities.

But the Glory clearly didn’t read the script.

With 88 minutes on the clock, Richard Garcia’s men found themselves 5-1 up against Adelaide on Wednesday. Two late goals eventually saw the match finish 5-3, although the scoreline didn’t really matter in the end.

A Nicholas D’Agostino double, along with goals from Neil Kilkenny, Bruno Fornaroli, and Carlo Armiento, saw Perth kicking things off in style.

The Western Australians were forced to wait a long time to begin their season, with numerous different start dates and potential opponents. Still, they obviously didn’t let the uncertainty unsettle them.

Following a solid debut campaign in the A-League, Western United has made an underwhelming start to their second season in Australia’s top flight. There is a sense that Rudan’s men may have set the bar too high.

On the flip side, Perth could barely have dreamed of a better start to 2021. I’m backing the Glory to carry their momentum into Saturday’s clash and pick up all three points.