Marco Kurz says his Adelaide United players are relishing the challenge of facing league leaders, Perth Glory.
After two straight matches on the road, Adelaide have another away trip to navigate against a highflying Perth outfit at HBF Park on Wednesday night.
The Reds recorded a 2-1 victory against Western Sydney Wanderers last time out, while Perth were held to a 0-0 draw by Melbourne City.
Kurz is predicting a tough match, but stated his side are not shying away from tackling the Glory, who have been the most consistent team in the competition.
“We’re looking forward to the game, we’re playing against the best team at the moment,” Kurz told a press conference.
“We want to travel to Perth and we want to win, we feel confident after our last games and now we’ve to show again against a strong team a good performance.”
The squad is in for our trip west… Mirko Boland has returned to Germany temporarily on bereavement leave. 😔 #AUFC #PERvADL
📰 Read more: https://t.co/OPunz9ycKC pic.twitter.com/hRYfOJwLiN
— Adelaide United (@AdelaideUnited) January 22, 2019
The German added that the confidence within the squad was high and outlined some of the tactical aspects they must be cognisant of while implementing their own playing style.
Kurz stated his chargers will need to be resolute defensively and be prepared for a lot of crosses into the area.
“We know about the quality from Perth but we feel confident to say that in one game there is always a fifty, fifty chance in this league,” he said.
“We must defend well against them, they’ve a good tactical line-up; that means they stay very compact
“They’ve a brilliant attacking movement game which means after they win the ball they’ve a good game in the last third.
“Their crossing game allows them to have a lot of numbers in the box and that means when they play with five at the back, the wing-backs are always in the box.
“But it’s now up to us how good we’re, how good we defend, and how good we create our chances.”
With centre-back, Michael Jakobsen, serving a one-match suspension due to the accumulation of five yellow cards, Kurz suggested Michael Marrone will likely assume his place.
One of the 31-year-old’s biggest assets is his versatility, and the ex-Schalke 04 defender alluded to Marrone being capable of playing anywhere across the back-four.
“Michael is the favourite (to replace Jakobsen at centre-back), he played there in the pre-season and also in the last game,” he said.
“And before my time here he has played in this position. Michael is always a good option for a lot of positions.”
Adelaide United face Perth Glory in Round 15 of the Hyundai A-League 2018/19 season on Wednesday, 23 January at HBF Park. Kick-off is at 9.30pm ACDT. Live on Fox Sports, and streamed on the My Football Live App.
