Preview: Western United vs. Melbourne City - prediction, team news, lineups

In the penultimate game of the regular season, Western United will be pushing to get into the top six in a bid to claim a place in the finals series.

On the other hand, Melbourne City are simply playing to keep up momentum considering the fact they are top of the table with a big enough points gap that they are unable to drop down.

Match preview

Western United find themselves in eighth place heading into this match, and their current mid-table predicament means they could end up finishing in the top six, but they realistically could also end the season bottom.

There is a lot to play for in the final two matches of the season because of that, but they do head into Saturday's match off the back of a 1-0 win against Adelaide United.

The victory was a surprise due to the league positioning of both teams, and Western United will have the chance to shock another one of the top teams in the division this time around.

Connor Pain's goal toward the end of the first half was enough to secure the win against Adelaide United, and the fact that they were able to keep a clean sheet is something the team will be pushing to repeat.

That defensive effort could be crucial on Saturday due to the fact that no team has scored more goals than the visitors this season.

The attacking qualities of Melbourne City have been slowed down somewhat as of late, as they have only scored a single goal in three of their previous six fixtures.

That is something that the league leaders will be wanting to address heading into the finals series where the pressure will be ramped up once again.

After being held to a 1-1 draw against Central Coast Mariners last week the team will also be wanting to return to winning ways to ensure they wrap up this portion of the season in style.

All three of Melbourne City's defeats this season have taken place away from home, and that is something that the team will not want to add to.

Just one more point would also provide a stronger finish than what the team accomplished last season which would showcase progression.

Team News

Sebastian Pasquali returned to the Western United team from the bench last weekend following his spell on the sidelines via injury, and he will be looking for more minutes this time around.

Tomoki Imai was brought straight back into the team though, adding further quality and experience from a defensive perspective.

The visitors have been without Mathew Leckie and Richard van der Venne recently because of hamstring and calf injuries respectively, which will be the case again this time out.

With Melbourne City already guaranteed a top-of-the-league finishing heading into the finals series, the final two games could also see a chance for some squad rotation.

Western United possible starting lineup:

Young; Risdon, Lacroix, Imai, Garuccio; Pierias, Doumbia, Lustica, Pain; Wales, Botic

Melbourne City possible starting lineup:

Glover; Talbot, Lam, Good, Bos; Berisha, Jamieson, O'Neill; Tilio, Nabboout, MacLaren

We say: Western United 1-3 Melbourne City

Western United have the home advantage and a lot to fight for in this game, but the attacking qualities of the visitors will likely prove to be too much in this one.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.