Carl Veart admitted nothing else mattered after collecting a vital three points over Melbourne Victory at AAMI Park on Sunday night.
The Reds were in control for the majority of the contest as Craig Goodwin’s seventh goal of the season proved the difference.
However, Adelaide was again profligate in front of goal and failed to kill off the game before half-time.
But the 1-0 win did snap a three-game losing streak on the road and crucially edge closer to booking a finals appearance.
“It’s the story of our season,” Veart claimed in the post-match press conference as United jumped into third place with 38 points.
“First-half again we played excellent football. We should’ve had at least three goals in that first-half.
“But tonight we dug in, the second-half we knew it was going to be tough and we dug in and we got the three points.
“That’s all that mattered tonight. It didn’t matter how we played football or what we did, we just needed the three points.”
It was the second time Adelaide recorded a clean sweep over its rivals after securing three triumphs against Victory during the inaugural A-League 2005/06 campaign.
Despite the positive result, Adelaide did not come out of the match unscathed following its fourth game in 11 days.
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Kusini Yengi sustained a hamstring injury in the warm-up, while Stefan Mauk was replaced soon after half-time due to an ongoing leg issue.
Juande was also substituted as a precaution as a result of soreness.
Veart said he was unsure over the severity of Yengi’s issue but expected his Captain will be available for the Reds’ next clash.
“Kusini (Yengi) pulled up with a hamstring in the warm-up,” he explained.
“It always seems to happen a bit here. That’s the second time here we’ve lost a player in the warm-up and Stef (Stefan Mauk) is just an injury that he’s been carrying for most of the season.
“He has his good days and his bad days and he tried to go through it today and you could see him limping around but he was still being effective doing what we wanted him to do.
“Juande was sore. He’s been quite sore for the last few weeks and he said that if he carried on he could feel something going, so rather than take the risk we withdrew him.”
Adelaide finish its season with a pair of home matches at Coopers Stadium, starting with Sydney FC on Saturday night.
Veart said the aim this week will be to freshen the side up after a gruelling schedule.
“We’re a different team at home,” Veart said, as Adelaide has lost just one of its 10 home games this year.
“We have fantastic support at home and it’s very difficult for teams to come and play at Hindmarsh.
“This week again at least we’ve got a little bit longer break now. We’ve got a six-day break until our next game, so rest, recover get our players right.
“All the players know how we want to play and what we have to do, so we don’t have to spend too much time on the pitch working on stuff like that.
“Now it’s just a matter of getting the players fresh and ready to play against Sydney FC.”
Next match details:
Saturday, 29 May vs Sydney FC
A-League 2020/21 – Matchweek 23
Kick-off 6.40pm ACST
Gates open 5.30pm ACST
Venue: Coopers Stadium
Broadcast: Fox Sports
Stream: Kayo Sports, MyFootball Live App
