Match Report: MetroStars 2-0 Adelaide Olympic

MetroStars too good in dominant display over Olympic

This Round 10 fixture between MetroStars and Adelaide Olympic was a must win clash for both. The home side had been knocked out of the FFA Cup earlier in the week and Olympic only had 1 win in their last 4 outings.

The game started very quick when 3 minutes in, Carmondy found Mori on a quick counter attack but he could only manage a shot that just cleared the crossbar.

A few moments later Esposito found Barbiero who sent a fiery shot at the bottom left corner, however Lewis Moss was able to get down low and save it.

17 minutes in, MetroStars again went close, this time with Piol curling a shot at the bottom left corner but again the goalkeeper was too good and managed to keep it out. The home side was absolutely dominating the game with multiple strong chances. Solagna and Esposito were controlling all the ball movement.

Half an hour into the game the heavens opened up and the ball was left flying around the pitch at a much faster pace due to the skim that could now be generated.

With 10 minutes left in the half Jason Konstandopoulos found Erba who shot for the bottom corner however great movement from Carmondy prevented the ball going into the back of the net.

This was the first real chance for Olympic and it reminded the home side to not get complacent.

A few moments later from a corner a beautiful counter attack was launched by Carmondy as he sent a kick to Barbiero who put Piol through on goal. His ensuing chip shot just went wide of the post as the Olympic keeper watched on in hope of a miss.

2 minutes into injury time Hamish Gow was taken down in a dangerous challenge and this led to a melee that led into halftime. Lucky for the home side Gow was able to get up and continue playing, a miracle considering the challenge.

As both teams went into halftime the game was still goal less despite MetroStars having 13 shots to 3, 9 of which were on target. The home side was in complete dominance of the game however, were unable to finish any of their chances.

The physicality continued into the second half as instantly Christos Pounendis got a yellow card for a late hit on Carmondy. This left the giant shot stopper down for a couple of minutes as he was treated to.

10 minutes into the second half MetroStars won themselves a penalty when Cooper O’Donnell found himself inside the penalty area on the back of an overlapping run. Christian Esposito stepped up to take the penalty and he calmly struck the ball into the bottom left corner, leaving the goalkeeper guessing the opposite way. This put the home side in front with around half an hour left, however, they were desperate to continue their dominance, hopefully resulting in some goals.

Towards the end of the second half Olympic gathered some momentum. They had multiple opportunities for good chances however desperate defending prevented any strong shots at goal.

5 minutes into injury time MetroStars finally scored their second goal of the afternoon. On the back of a counter attack Dylan Smith gorgeously put through Josh Mori who put the ball past the advancing keeper for his third goal of the season. This sent the home crowd into celebrations and relief that the game was finally beyond the reach of Olympic.

This proved to be the nail in the coffin as the referee blew fulltime from the ensuing kick off.

MetroStars finished the game with 18 shots compared to Olympic’s 4. The game was very stop-start and that was shown through 22 fouls committed, 5 resulting in yellow cards.

This win sent MetroStars into 3rd place, 1 win behind Adelaide City in first. It continues their strong league form with 4 wins in their last 5 games. Next week's game is against Adelaide Croatia Raiders who find themselves in 9th place.