The Sporting Hack

FC Seoul head coach Kim Gi-dong (above) was left bemoaning missed opportunities as his side slumped to a 3-0 loss against Melbourne Victory on Wednesday evening.  “When we had a chance, we had to put the ball into the net,” he said of the AFC Champions League Two encounter. “Otherwise, we learn the lesson that we're going to be punished today. We were punished by missing chances.  “We had some good moments in the second half, and we created good chances. I believe that we should have scored, but we fail to score. And then we concede really easily. I believe this is football.” Despite being runaway leaders of the K-League, Kim rang the changes for the 8,500km trip to Australia, naming a youthful side who will learn from defeat to the more experienced A-League outfit. “The young boys; I believe they were disappointed by themselves because they believe themselves and they believed that they could do better,” he said. “But today, unfortunately, they didn't show their full quality...

Melbourne Victory 3 – 0 FC Seoul AFC Champions League Two Matchday 2 Melbourne Rectangular Stadium Melbourne Victory vanquished Saturday evening’s bitter disappointment of Australian Cup final defeat by seeing off K-League table toppers, FC Seoul, in resounding fashion. Chalking up a first win in this season’s AFC Champions League 2 proved to be the perfect antidote to losing on penalties a game in which they were heavily fancied to win against local semi-professional outfit South Melbourne FC four days ago. With that fresh in the mind – and with an eye on a weekend trip to New Zealand’s capital to face Wellington Phoenix in their A-League opener - as many as six changes were made for this encounter against the Koreans. One of those changes, Denis Genreau, took his chance by laying on two second half assists as just rewards for the goalscorer from Saturday’s final. Guillermo May was the initial beneficiary as he broke the deadlock just after the hour mark. Having thumped the po...

Revenge is on the minds of Melbourne Victory as they face cross-city rivals, Melbourne City, at AAMI Park on Saturday evening. The two clubs met in last season’s A-League Grand Final with City edging the game 1-0 but in former Spain and Manchester United star, Juan Mata, the hosts have a potential matchwinner in their ranks. The 38-year-old (above) netted his first goal for the club in the recent win against Perth Glory and that could be a positive sign of things to come for the Big V. “He's an unbelievable guy. What he has done in this game and how humble and respectful he is, is phenomenal and we should count ourselves lucky in Australia to have someone like that in the A-League,” said captain Jason Davidson. “He's got the hunger and the will to win, both on and off the pitch, and it's fantastic. If you look at his career and what he's accomplished and the trophies he has won, then that speaks for itself. “To have longevity like that at the clubs that he...