Adelaide United midfielder, Marcelo Carrusca, insists the Club will come to the game with a “winning mentality”, as they face Sydney FC in Round 16 at Allianz Stadium on Friday.
The Reds will be hoping to string consecutive wins for the first time this season, and in the process reignite their title defence.
It is the third time these two sides will meet with the Reds recording a 0-0 away draw and a 0-4 home loss in Rounds 8 and 12 respectively.
Last matchday, the Reds recorded a sensational 2-1 victory over Melbourne City at Coopers Stadium, while the Sky Blues played out a home 0-0 draw against Western Sydney Wanderers in the Sydney Derby.
Carrusca admits the victory against City last week has given the squad renewed optimism they can make a serious push for the finals.
“To be honest it (the win against City) helps a lot because we didn’t have a lot of confidence,” Carrusca said.
“We had been losing almost every game and now with this victory it changes the situation a little bit and we are more confident.
The Argentine maestro is expecting a difficult clash and affirmed the Reds will be vying for the three points, in a bid to end the Sky Blues’ invincible start to the season.
“We know the situation that we’re in and we know that we’ve to give 100 per cent every game,” Carrusca said.
“This game is no exception and we need to go there and have a good game and try to bring the three points to Adelaide.
“We’re going with the mentality to win the game to get the three points, to play a good game and keep the ball.
“And we know it’s going to be a tough game, they’re in a good moment and have great players and people on the bench who can do good things.”
Adelaide are unbeaten in their previous five games in the regular season at Allianz Stadium, with their last defeat occurring in February 2013.
In fact, United have registered five successive clean sheets in each of their past five regular season visits to the Harbour City against the Sky Blues, outscoring them 9-0 across those games.
With a host of players including Tarek Elrich and Iacopo La Rocca returning to the fray, Carrusca welcomed the selection headaches Head Coach, Guillermo Amor, will encounter when naming his starting XI.
“It’s always good to have a full squad and now the coach (Amor) has the problem to pick the team,” he continued.
“It’s good because we’re more competitive when everyone is fit and now we see what happens tomorrow.
“But for us it’s another final that we’ve to win.”
Adelaide United will face Sydney FC in Round 16 of the Hyundai A-League 2016/17 season on Friday, 20 January at Allianz Stadium. Kick-off is at 7.20pm ACDT.
TV Broadcast: Live coverage on Fox Sports 505 from 7:15pm (ACDT), SBS VICELAND from 7.00pm ACDT.
