Melbourne hold Wellington 0-0 | Thebigtip

The Melbourne Victory hosted the Wellington Phoenix in a dour 0-0 draw last night in front of a respectable crowd of 11,513 at AAMI Park. The result means that Wellington will leapfrog Melbourne into 5^th position on the A-League table in a game which saw Adrian Leijer lead the Navy Blues in Kevin Muscat’s absence.

It was a frustrating night for Melbourne who almost went behind when a Leo Bertos free kick was nearly turned in by Surat Sukha but for the quick reflexes of Michael Petkovic in goal. Melbourne’s defence was again tested in the 10^th minute when ex-player Nick Ward latched onto a Bertos corner but could only manage to send his shot into the near post. The warning signs were there early for Melbourne and Wellington clearly dominated the opening 20 minutes and created great chances through Leo Bertos and Paul Ifill.

Melbourne would have to wait until the 15^th minute until they would get their first shot on goal when Diogo Ferreira broke into the Wellington box and sent his shot just wide of the near post. That would be the only highlight for Melbourne in the first half with the home side unable to create any real opportunities.

Michael Petkovic was again called on in the 43^rd minute when Paul Ifill found Chris Greenacre in the Melbourne box but the Wellington striker was unable to control the ball and sent his shot straight to Petkovic who simply tipped the ball over the crossbar for a corner.

The Navy Blues came close to scoring in the 61^st minute when substitute Mate Dugandzic sent Carlos Hernandez into the box but the Costa Rican’s shot was saved by Wellington keeper Danny Vukovic. Melbourne again came close when Brazilian import Ricardinho cut onto his right foot and tried to curl the ball around Vukovic but the Wellington shotstopper managed to parry the ball around the far post.

Melbourne’s last chance to steal the points came in the 88^th minute when a comical error by the Wellington defence saw Melbourne’s Billy Celeski gifted the ball with an open goal to shoot at outside the box but the playmaker unselfishly chose to chip the ball to Dugandzic who was heavily marked by defenders.

Melbourne will be disappointed in last night’s lacklustre effort. It was a game which saw Melbourne's forward three stagnant for much of the night and not for the first time this season. The most frustrating aspect of Melbourne’s game seems to be their inability to back themselves when shooting form distance, too many times last night the ball was given away by players being unselfish and doing the “team” thing.  Players of the ilk of Hernandez, Brebner and Celeski surely should have the confidence and self assurance to be able to take shots from outside the box and test the keeper.

It would seem that in the space of four days Melbourne has forgotten how to find the back of the net, and last night they lacked any fluency going forward. It’s becoming an all too familiar story with Melbourne; dominate possession for a hand-full of shots on goal. Hopefully Melbourne can address these issues within the next few days as it travels to Townsville to face the North Queensland Fury.