Western Sydney Wanderers will be looking to record a third consecutive league victory on Friday when they welcome Perth Glory to the Bankwest Stadium.
The hosts currently sit in second spot in the Australian A-League table, while Perth Glory have dropped to ninth due to a three-game winless run.
Match preview
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Western Sydney Wanderers recorded a dramatic win last time out, defeating Wellington Phoenix 4-3 at home.
The hosts went behind on three separate occasions, with Daniel Wilmering, Jordon Mutch and Mitchell Duke all levelling the game, before Kwame Yeboah netted a winner in the 84th minute.
Before that, Mutch fired his side to a 1-0 win away at a resurgent Western United outfit.
That moved Carl Robinson's side within six points of league leaders Central Coast Mariners, pouncing after the first-placed side dropped points in their last game.
They have the chance to reduce that gap to three points with a win on Friday, before the Mariners return to league action on Monday.
However, that will be no easy task as they welcome a Perth Glory side desperate for a win to propel them back up the table after a recent drop.
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After a strong start to the season, winning four of their first six league games, the side from Perth have since dipped in form and seen a rapid drop down the table to ninth spot.
However, their last game showed a sign of improvement as they played out a 2-2 draw with league leaders Central Coast Mariners.
It was not all positive though, as Richard Garcia's side were only held to a draw by a late Mariners equaliser through Matt Simon, after Bruno Fornaroli and Nicholas D'Agostino had put them 2-1 ahead.
Despite the disappointment of a late equaliser, Garcia's men definitely provided foundations to build on, having previously suffered defeats to the Mariners and Wellington Phoenix.
They will be looking to go one better on Friday, as they set their sights on a first win in four league outings to kickstart a move back up towards the top end of the table.
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Team News
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Western Sydney Wanderers have managed to stay clear of serious injury problems so far this campaign, with goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic the only long-term absentee.
Jordon Mutch has been crucial for his side in recent weeks, registering two goals and an assist in the last two games.
He will be joined in midfield by the returning Graham Dorrans, who served a suspension last time out after picking up five yellow cards this campaign.
Perth Glory could remain without centre-back Mason Tatafu, who has missed the last two games with an ankle injury.
He is joined on the sidelines by Chris Ikonomidis, who remains out with a knee injury.
Nicholas D'Agostino will be pushing for a starting spot on Friday, after he continued his clinical form off the bench last time out, netting his fifth league goal of the season.
Garcia changed his goalkeeper last game, with Liam Reddy being preferred over Tando Velaphi.
Western Sydney Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Margush; Gordon, McGowan, Natta; Russell, Mutch, Dorrans, Wilmering; Ibini-Isei, Duke, Troisi
Perth Glory possible starting lineup:
Reddy; Ingham, Bodnar, Lachman, Ota; Armiento, Kilkenny, Wilson, Castro; D'Agostino, Fornaroli
We say: Western Sydney Wanderers 2-2 Perth Glory
While the league positions do tell one story, we believe Perth Glory are better than what their current situation suggests, and we see them taking a point from this game in what will be a close encounter.
Garcia's side undoubtedly pose a threat to any side in the league when they are close to their best, and with the need to climb back up the table, we see them stepping up here to match a strong Western Sydney Wanderers outfit.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Western Sydney Wanderers win with a probability of 39.46%. A win for Perth Glory had a probability of 35.58% and a draw had a probability of 25%.
The most likely scoreline for a Western Sydney Wanderers win was 2-1 with a probability of 8.62%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (8.45%) and 2-0 (6.22%). The likeliest Perth Glory win was 1-2 (8.11%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.7%). The actual scoreline of 3-0 was predicted with a 3.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Western Sydney Wanderers would win this match.
