A-League - It's Derby Time and the Stakes Couldn't Be Higher on Matchday 4
by Thobelani Moyo | by Cydias Aujard
Melbourne Victory vs Melbourne City: Cross-city rivals battle it out for bragging rights
If this doesn't fit in your vocabulary as one of the standout fixtures on matchday four in the 2025-26 A-League, then we don't know what is! It's the Melbourne derby, and when both these giants in Australian football collide, you can basically feel the tension in the air. Melbourne Victory will be out to exact revenge here, while Melbourne City are out to prove they are the biggest team in the city, worthy of all the praise.
For the former, this serves as a rematch for last season's blunder when they succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at AAMI Park in the A-League Men grand final. Yonatan Cohen scored the only goal for Melbourne City in that match, which led to them lifting their second championship.
In the current A-League campaign, both sides have made contrasting starts with Melbourne City occupying fourth place with five points to their name, while Melbourne Victory are way down in eighth place. However, as explained in our Melbourne Victory vs Melbourne City prediction, the distance between them and Aurelio Vidmar's men is not that much, as they are separated by just one point.
Victory here could see them jump into the top three. Will that be possible?
Check out the results from Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City on matchday three of the A-League:
- Melbourne Victory: Recorded their first of the season by beating Perth Glory 2-0 on the road. This comes after two failed attempts.
- Melbourne City: Couldn't make it two wins in a row after snatching a point in a goalless away draw against Brisbane Roar.
Wellington vs Auckland FC: The defending champions have been merciless in this fixture
Football fanatics are about to be treated to another headline-worthy fixture this Saturday, and it's between Wellington Phoenix FC and Auckland FC. This is the New Zealand Derby, and the latter currently dominates this fixture with three wins in three. It's worth mentioning that this is the second season of this derby. The first meeting was on November 02, 2024.
Check out past results between these two sides:
- November 02, 2024: Wellington Phoenix FC 0-2 Auckland FC (first match of the derby)
- December 07, 2024: Auckland FC 2-1 Wellington Phoenix FC
- February 22, 2025: Auckland FC 6-1 Wellington Phoenix FC
After a bottom-three finish in the previous A-League season, it's fair to say that Wellington Phoenix FC have made a promising start in the current campaign. In three games, they have accumulated five points and occupy fourth place. Notably, they are two points behind the top spot and will hope to register an important win. However, our experts don't think that will be possible in our Wellington Phoenix vs Auckland FC prediction as their defensive frailties could undermine their progress.
Auckland FC achieved the impossible in the previous season. The Black Knights conquered the A-League to clinch their first-ever Premier's Plate in the competition. This also made the first team to achieve this feat in their debut season.
It also appears Steve Corica's men are far from hitting the brakes in the current campaign as they are hell-bent on defending their title. After three games, they find themselves at the top of the table with seven points. They have won three and drawn one. Their recent match was a 2-1 home victory against Adelaide United, marking their second win on the bounce.
Sydney FC vs Macarthur FC: The Bulls hold a slight upper hand in this local derby
Sydney FC have already established themselves as an early title contender this season. Ufuk Talay's men are keeping close tabs on the defending champions as they occupy second place in the A-League standings and are one point behind the top spot.
At first, it wasn't a convincing start to the season they had hoped for, dropping three points in a 2-1 away defeat against Adelaide United. Their response to that setback has been nothing short of refreshing, picking up three points in victories over Central Coast Mariners and, most recently, the Newcastle Jets. This means they come into this match riding a two-match winning streak.
Macarthur FC also had a shaky start to the season. In their opening match, they succumbed to a 1-0 away defeat against Brisbane Roar. After that, they managed to record their first win, a 2-1 home victory over Adelaide United, before being held to a 1-1 draw against Western Sydney Wanderers FC.
The Bulls will want to maintain that two-match unbeaten run in their match against Sydney. From their point of view, that shouldn't be challenging considering they have a slight upper hand with six wins in 12 meetings (L5, D1).
