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Wellington Phoenix will entertain Adelaide United at the Wellington Regional Stadium in their A-League campaign opener on Sunday (October 9).
The hosts finished sixth in the league last season, a respectable finish given their poor goalscoring and defensive record. They scored 34 goals and conceded 49, which was the worst defensive record in the competition.
Wellington enjoyed a solid run in the Australia Cup earlier this year, making the quarterfinals. They beat Melbourne City in the Round of 16 but fell to a 2-0 defeat against Macarthur.
Adelaide, meanwhile, finished fourth in the league last season, ending their campaign with a five-game winning run. They made it to the championship phase, where they lost 2-1 against Melbourne City in the semifinals.
They also reached the Australia Cup last eight in August, where they lost 2-1 against Brisbane Roar.
Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- The two teams have crossed paths 40 times across competitions. The hosts have been the better team against their Western rivals with 18 wins to Adelaide's 12, while ten games have ended in draws.
- Their previous league meeting in February at Wellington ended in a 1-1 draw. Wellington are unbeaten at home since 2018, when Adelaide beat them 3-1.
- Three of the last five meetings between Wellington and Adelaide have ended in draws, with the three games producing fewer than 2.5 goals.
- Wellington have not scored in two of their last three meetings against Adelaide, who have scored five goals in this period.
- Adelaide had the third-best defensive record (conceding 31 goals) last season in A-League. They have two clean sheets in their last three games against Wellington.
Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United Prediction
Wellington scored six goals in their Australia Cup campaign, but none of them came at home. Adelaide, meanwhile, scored five goals, with only one of them coming at home.
As this is the first game of the campaign, both teams would look to start cautiously. Given the recent results in this fixture, Adelaide should eke out a narrow win.
Prediction: Wellington Phoenix 0-1 Adelaide United
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Wellington Phoenix vs Adelaide United Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - Adelaide
Tip 2: Goals - Over/Under 2.5 Goals - Under 2.5
Tip 3: At least a goal to be scored in the second half - Yes
Tip 4: Adelaide to score first - Yes
