Adelaide United Head Coach, Guillermo Amor, hinted the Reds may need to manage loads ahead of a cluttered immediate schedule.
Following Sunday’s hard-fought 1-0 win over the Newcastle Jets at Coopers Stadium, Adelaide have a short turnaround before hosting Sydney FC this Friday and an even shorter turnaround ahead of their AFC Champions League clash with either Chinese sister club Shandong Luneng Taishan or India’s Mohun Bagan the following Tuesday (February 9).
Amor was candid when asked if the busy fortnight ahead would change his approach to the upcoming Sky Blues encounter.
“It’s possible,” he said. “We are always looking at the next game, but sometimes we think in the next and then the next and then the next.
“This is normal in football. It’s okay. It (short break) is not a problem.”
After racking up 10 goals in the previous three weeks, the Reds were more subdued on Sunday, scraping across the line relatively unconvincingly due to a combination of their own middling play and the Jets’ admirable workrate and defensive competitiveness.
Only Marcelo Carrusca’s tapped in goal shortly before half-time separated the two sides, but for Amor, winning ugly is still winning.
“When you win and play well, to maintain this is very difficult,” he said.
“It’s difficult for the big teams in the world.
“On some days, you play better, you have more chances, you enjoy more of the football; but other days in soccer, it’s hard, it’s strong, the game is more difficult and your job is different.
“Newcastle came here to win the game. They played very well.
“The result is good. The game is difficult, hard (and) strong, here or away. What’s important is to win this game.
“For us this was a very important game.”
Adelaide United will face Sydney FC in Round 18 of the Hyundai A-League 2015/16 season on Friday, 5 February at Coopers Stadium. Kick-off is at 7.10pm ACDT.
