2019–20 Melbourne City FC season

The 2019–20 season was the tenth in the history of Melbourne City Football Club. In addition to the domestic league, Melbourne City competed in the Australia Cup for the sixth time.

Melbourne City
2019–20 season
ChairmanKhaldoon Al Mubarak
ManagerErick Mombaerts
StadiumAAMI Park
A-League2nd
A-League FinalsRunners-up
FFA CupRunners-up
Top goalscorerLeague: Jamie Maclaren (23)
All: Jamie Maclaren (29)
Highest home attendance17,083
vs. Melbourne Victory
(21 December 2019)
A-League
Lowest home attendance2,292
vs. Western Sydney Wanderers
(14 March 2020)
A-League
Average home league attendance8,310
Biggest win5–1
vs. Brisbane Strikers (A)
(1 October 2019)
FFA Cup
4–0
vs. Newcastle Jets (A)
(15 December 2019)
A-League
Biggest defeat0–4
vs. Adelaide United (A)
(23 October 2019)
FFA Cup

The club appointed Erick Mombaerts to the vacant managerial role at the start of the season. On 24 March 2020, the FFA announced that the 2019–20 A-League season would be postponed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and New Zealand,[1] and subsequently extended indefinitely. The season resumed on 17 July 2020.[2]

In the 2019–20 season, Melbourne City qualified for though lost both the FFA Cup Final and A-League Grand Final, the latter being the first time it had qualified for a Grand Final. It finished the season in its highest ever place of second position, and in doing so qualified for a maiden AFC Champions League spot in 2021.

Review

Pre-season

Melbourne City finished fifth in the previous season before being eliminated by Adelaide United by a single goal.[3] Before the season started, Warren Joyce left the role as manager to join the Salford City development squad.[4] The club appointed Erick Mombaerts as new manager on 27 June 2019.[5] In the transfer market, they lost Dylan Pierias and Joshua Cavallo to the newest A-League club, Western United.[6][7] After signing Scott Galloway from Adelaide United,[8] Denis Genreau and Dean Bouzanis returned to the squad from their loan at Dutch club PEC Zwolle.[9]

Players

Squad information

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos. NationPlayer
21MF  AUSRamy Najjarine
22DF  AUSCurtis Good
30FW  AUSMoudi Najjar
34MF  AUSConnor Metcalfe
35FW  AUSRaphael Rodrigues (Scholarship)
36DF  AUSKerrin Stokes (Scholarship)
37FW  AUSGianluca Iannucci (Scholarship)
38FW  AUSYaya Dukuly (Scholarship)
40DF  AUTRichard Windbichler
46GK  AUSJoe Gauci (Scholarship)
49FW  AUSStefan Colakovski (Scholarship)
51MF  AUSIdrus Abdulahi (Scholarship)
59MF  AUSBernardo Oliveira (Scholarship)

Transfers

Transfers in

No.PositionPlayerTransferred fromType/feeContract lengthDateRef
2DFScott GallowayAdelaide UnitedFree transfer3 years3 May 2019[8]
17MFDenis Genreau PEC ZwolleLoan return8 May 2019[9]
23GKDean Bouzanis PEC ZwolleLoan return8 May 2019[9]
11MF Craig Noone Bolton WanderersUndisclosed2 years17 June 2019[10]
40DF Richard WindbichlerUnattachedFree transfer2 years28 June 2019[11]
6MFJoshua BrillanteSydney FCFree transfer2 years8 July 2019[12]
8MF Javier CabreraUnattachedFree transfer2 years9 July 2019[13]
20FW Adrián LunaUnattachedFree transfer2 years19 July 2019[14]
1GKTom GloverUnattachedFree transfer2 years6 August 2019[15]
36DFKerrin Stokes Croydon KingsScholarship2 years9 September 2019[16]
46GKJoe Gauci Adelaide CityScholarship1 year9 September 2019[16]
59MFBernardo Oliveira FFSA NTCScholarship1 year7 November 2019[17]
14FW Markel SusaetaUnattachedFree transfer0.5 year16 January 2020[18]
5DF Jack Hendry CelticLoan0.5 year22 January 2020[19]

Transfers out

No.PositionPlayerTransferred toType/feeDateRef
36DFDylan PieriasWestern UnitedFree transfer20 March 2019[6]
38MFJoshua CavalloWestern UnitedFree transfer15 April 2019[7]
2DF Ritchie De Laet Aston VillaLoan return8 May 2019[20]
8MFRiley McGree Club BruggeLoan return8 May 2019[20]
9FW Shayon Harrison Tottenham HotspurLoan return8 May 2019[20]
18GKEugene GalekovicRetired8 May 2019[21]
42GKJames DelianovWestern UnitedFree transfer9 May 2019[22]
25DF Iacopo La RoccaUnattachedEnd of contract9 May 2019[23]
10MFDario VidošićUnattachedEnd of contract3 June 2019[24]
26MFLuke Brattan Manchester CityLoan return30 June 2019[25][26]
5DF Bart SchenkeveldUnattachedEnd of contract2 July 2019[27]
15MFKearyn Baccus Kaizer ChiefsUndisclosed2 July 2019[27][28]
1GKMark BirighittiCentral Coast MarinersFree transfer30 July 2019[29][30]
8MF Javier CabreraUnattachedMutual contract termination12 January 2020[31]
14FW Markel SusaetaUnattachedEnd of contract14 July 2020[32]
23GKDean BouzanisUnattachedMutual contract termination25 July 2020[33]
5DF Jack Hendry CelticEnd of loan14 July 2020[34]

From youth squad

N
Pos.
Nat.
Name
Age
Notes
35MF Raphael Rodrigues163 year scholarship contract[16]
38FW Yaya Dukuly162 year scholarship contract[16]
49FW Stefan Colakovski191 year scholarship contract[17]
51MF Idrus Abdulahi152 year scholarship contract[16]

Contract extensions

No.NamePositionDurationDateNotes
22Curtis GoodCentre-back2 years8 July 2019[35]
30Moudi NajjarCentre-forward3 years11 September 2019[36]
34Connor MetcalfeMidfielder3 years11 September 2019[36]
21Ramy NajjarineAttacking midfielder3 years17 October 2019[37]
49Stefan ColakovskiForward2 years28 January 2020[38]

Technical staff

PositionName[39]
Head Coach Erick Mombaerts
Technical Director Alain Fiard
Senior Assistant Coach Patrick Kisnorbo
Goalkeeping Coach Neil Young
Head of Human Performance Andrew McKenzie
Performance Analysis Manager Donna Rice
Football Logistics Manager Josh Bondin

Kits

Supplier: Puma / Sponsor: Etihad Airways / Sleeve sponsor: McDonald's

Home
Away
Third
Goalkeeper1
Goalkeeper2
Goalkeeper3

Pre-season and friendlies

  Win  Draw  Loss

v Melbourne City
23 July 2019 Oakleigh Cannons 3–4 Melbourne City Melbourne
  • White 50'
  • Foschini 55'
  • Koutsakis 104'
Report
Stadium: Jack Edwards Reserve
Attendance: 1,000
v Melbourne City
6 August 2019 Bentleigh Greens 0–3 Melbourne City Melbourne
19:30 AESTReport
Stadium: Kingston Heath Soccer Complex
v Melbourne City
14 August 2019 Adelaide United 0–1 Melbourne City Adelaide
14:00 ACSTReportStadium: Coopers Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
v Central Coast Mariners
4 September 2019 Melbourne City 2–0 Central Coast Mariners Melbourne
14:00ReportStadium: City Football Academy
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
v Western United
10 September 2019 Melbourne City 1–2 Western United Melbourne
Report
Stadium: City Football Academy
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
v Adelaide United
24 September 2019 Melbourne City 1–2 Adelaide United Melbourne
Report
Stadium: City Football Academy
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
v Adelaide United
24 September 2019 Melbourne City 5–3 Adelaide United Melbourne
Report (Melbourne City)
Report (Adelaide United)
Stadium: City Football Academy
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)

Competitions

Overall record

CompetitionFirst matchLast matchStarting roundFinal positionRecord
PldWDLGFGAGDWin %
A-League12 October 201919 August 2020Matchday 12nd2614574937+12053.85
A-League Finals26 August 202030 August 2020Semi-finalsRunners-up210121+1050.00
FFA Cup31 July 201923 October 2019Round of 32Runners-up5401137+6080.00
Total3319596445+19057.58

Source: Soccerway

A-League

League table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification
1Sydney FC (C)2616554925+2453Qualification for 2021 AFC Champions League group stage and Finals series[a][40][b]
2Melbourne City2614574937+1247Qualification for 2021 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs and Finals series[a][b]
3Wellington Phoenix[c]2612593833+541Qualification for Finals series[b]
4Brisbane Roar2611782928+140Qualification for 2021 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs and Finals series[a][b]
5Western United26123114637+939Qualification for Finals series[b]
6Perth Glory2610794336+737
7Adelaide United26113124449−536
8Newcastle Jets2697103240−834
9Western Sydney Wanderers2696113540−533
10Melbourne Victory2665153344−1123
11Central Coast Mariners2653182655−2918
Source: A-Leagues
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions
Notes:

Results summary

OverallHomeAway
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsWDLGFGAGDWDLGFGAGD
2615474937 +12499222215 +76252722 +5

Results by round

Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223282426292527
GroundAHAHHAABHAHAHAHHAHABHAHBAANNN
ResultDWWWWLWBLWLLWDWDLWLBWWDBWLWDW
Position63211112222222222223222222222
Points1471013131616161919192223262727303030333637374040434447
Source: Ultimate A-League
A = Away; H = Home; N = Neutral; B = Bye; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

12 October 2019 1 Melbourne Victory 0–0 Melbourne City Melbourne
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: Marvel Stadium
Attendance: 33,523
Referee: Chris Beath
20 October 2019 2 Melbourne City 2–1 Adelaide United Melbourne
16:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 7,399
Referee: Shaun Evans
27 October 2019 3 Western United 1–2 Melbourne City Geelong
18:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 7,042
Referee: Adam Kersey
3 November 2019 4 Melbourne City 3–2 Wellington Phoenix Melbourne
16:00 AEDTReport
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 6,440
Referee: Ben Abraham
8 November 2019 5 Melbourne City 3–1 Central Coast Mariners Melbourne
19:30 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 5,547
Referee: Stephen Lucas
17 November 2019 6 Brisbane Roar 4–3 Melbourne City Brisbane
15:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: Moreton Daily Stadium
Attendance: 9,387
Referee: Alex King
22 November 2019 7 Western Sydney Wanderers 2–3 Melbourne City Sydney
20:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Bankwest Stadium
Attendance: 12,078
Referee: Chris Beath
6 December 2019 9 Melbourne City 0–3 Perth Glory Melbourne
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 6,679
Referee: Shaun Evans
15 December 2019 10 Newcastle Jets 0–4 Melbourne City Newcastle
18:30 AEDTReport
Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 8,133
Referee: Alireza Faghani
21 December 2019 11 Melbourne City 1–2 Melbourne Victory Melbourne
17:00 AEDTReport
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 17,083
Referee: Alex King
29 December 2019 12 Sydney FC 2–1 Melbourne City Sydney
18:30 AEDTReportStadium: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
Attendance: 17,421
Referee: Kurt Ams
3 January 2020 13 Melbourne City 3–2 Western United Melbourne
19:30 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 8,577
Referee: Adam Kersey
11 January 2020 14 Brisbane Roar 2–2 Melbourne City Brisbane
16:00 AEDT
ReportStadium: Suncorp Stadium
Attendance: 10,659
Referee: Daniel Elder
18 January 2020 15 Melbourne City 2–0 Newcastle Jets Melbourne
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 6,857
Referee: Kate Jacewicz
25 January 2020 16 Melbourne City 0–0 Perth Glory Melbourne
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 6,103
Referee: Daniel Elder
1 February 2020 17 Adelaide United 3–1 Melbourne City Adelaide
19:00 ACDT
Report
Stadium: Coopers Stadium
Attendance: 7,068
Referee: Alex King
7 February 2020 18 Melbourne City 2–1 Melbourne Victory Melbourne
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 16,872
Referee: Shaun Evans
15 February 2020 19 Wellington Phoenix 1–0 Melbourne City Auckland
19:00 NZDT
ReportStadium: Eden Park
Attendance: 15,347
Referee: Alex King
1 March 2020 21 Melbourne City 1–0 Brisbane Roar Melbourne
18:30 AEDT
ReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 7,559
Referee: Shaun Evans
8 March 2020 22 Perth Glory 2–3 Melbourne City Perth
15:00 AWSTReportStadium: HBF Park
Attendance: 8,107
Referee: Kurt Ams
14 March 2020 23 Melbourne City 1–1 Western Sydney Wanderers Melbourne
19:30 AEDT
ReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 2,292
Referee: Kate Jacewicz
20 March 2020 24 Central Coast Mariners 2–4 Melbourne City Gosford
17:30 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Central Coast Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia)
Referee: Kurt Ams
23 March 2020 26 Newcastle Jets 2–1 Melbourne City Newcastle
19:30 AEDTReportStadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia)
Referee: Ben Abraham
Season postponement due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
1 August 2020 29 Melbourne City 2–0 Sydney FC Sydney
17:00 AESTReportStadium: ANZ Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia)
Referee: Ben Abraham
Note: Match originally scheduled for 26 April 2020 at AAMI Park, but postponed and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. It was rescheduled to 1 August 2020 at ANZ Stadium.
11 August 2020 25 Melbourne City 2–2 Adelaide United Sydney
19:30 AEST
Report
Stadium: ANZ Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia)
Referee: Alex King
Note: Match originally scheduled for 27 March 2020 at AAMI Park, but postponed and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. It was rescheduled to 11 August 2020 at ANZ Stadium.
19 August 2020 27 Western United 1–3 Melbourne City Sydney
19:30 AESTReport
Stadium: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in Australia)
Referee: Tim Danaskos
Note: Match originally scheduled for 10 April 2020 at Mars Stadium, but postponed and relocated due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. It was rescheduled to 19 August 2020 at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.

Finals series

26 August 2020 Semi-finals Melbourne City 2–0 Western United Sydney
17:00 AEST
ReportStadium: Bankwest Stadium
Attendance: 1,897
Referee: Alireza Faghani
30 August 2020 Grand Final Sydney FC 1–0 (a.e.t.) Melbourne City Sydney
18:30 AEST
ReportStadium: Bankwest Stadium
Attendance: 7,051
Referee: Chris Beath

FFA Cup

As an A-League team, Melbourne City automatically qualified through to the Round of 32 as one of the ten A-League clubs competing in the competition.[41] In the opening round they took on South Australian side Campbelltown City who won the previous years National Premier Leagues title.[42]

31 July 2019 Round of 32 Campbelltown City 1–3 Melbourne City Adelaide
19:30 AEST
Report
Stadium: Steve Woodcock Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,078
Referee: Adam Bavcar
21 August 2019 Round of 16 Marconi Stallions 1–2 Melbourne City Sydney
19:30 AEST
  • Fernandez 85'
ReportStadium: Marconi Stadium
Attendance: 1,947
Referee: Stephen Lucas
18 September 2019 Quarter-finals Melbourne City 3–0 Western Sydney Wanderers Melbourne
19:30 AEST
ReportStadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 2,905
Referee: Stephen Lucas
1 October 2019 Semi-finals Brisbane Strikers 1–5 Melbourne City Brisbane
19:30 AEDTReport
Stadium: Perry Park
Attendance: 3,706
Referee: Adam Kersey
23 October 2019 Final Adelaide United 4–0 Melbourne City Adelaide
19:00 ACDTReportStadium: Coopers Stadium
Attendance: 14,920
Referee: Alex King

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Includes all competitions. Players with no appearances not included in the list.[43]

No.Pos.Nat.NameA-LeagueFFA CupTotal
Regular seasonFinals series
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
1GK Tom Glover1302000150
2DF Scott Galloway12+810+2051272
3DF Scott Jamieson2200050270
4DF Harrison Delbridge18+412050291
6MF Joshua Brillante25+112050331
7MF Rostyn Griffiths15+420+200+10222
9FW Jamie Maclaren232221563029
10MF Florin Berenguer13+23203+10213
11FW Craig Noone24+152054329
13DF Nathaniel Atkinson13+812000231
17MF Denis Genreau4+20000+2080
19FW Lachlan Wales12+130201+20300
20MF Adrián Luna18+55202+30305
21FW Ramy Najjarine2+600+102+10120
22DF Curtis Good2412000261
30MF Moudi Najjar2+41000+1071
34MF Connor Metcalfe9+720+2050232
35FW Raphael Borges Rodrigues0+10000010
39MF Idrus Abdulahi0+10000010
40DF Richard Windbichler5+10200+20100
49FW Stefan Colakovski1+500+100070
Player(s) transferred out but featured this season
5DF Jack Hendry20000020
8FW Javier Cabrera7+21002+21132
14FW Markel Susaeta9+120000102
23GK Dean Bouzanis1300050180

Disciplinary record

Includes all competitions. The list is sorted by squad number when total cards are equal. Players with no cards not included in the list.

RankNo.Pos.Nat.NameA-LeagueFFA CupTotal
Regular seasonFinals series
       
14DF Harrison Delbridge412000000412
211FW Craig Noone401000000401
33DF Scott Jamieson800000100900
420MF Adrián Luna500100200800
56MF Joshua Brillante300100100500
7MF Rostyn Griffiths500000000500
13DF Nathaniel Atkinson400100000500
82DF Scott Galloway400000000400
10MF Florin Berenguer400000000400
17MF Denis Genreau300000100400
40DF Richard Windbichler300100000400
1222DF Curtis Good300000000300
1319FW Lachlan Wales100100000200
23GK Dean Bouzanis200000000200
34MF Connor Metcalfe200000000200
161GK Tom Glover100000000100
8FW Javier Cabrera100000000100
9FW Jamie Maclaren100000000100
30MF Moudi Najjar100000000100
Total59125005007912

Clean sheets

Includes all competitions. The list is sorted by squad number when total clean sheets are equal. Numbers in parentheses represent games where both goalkeepers participated and both kept a clean sheet; the number in parentheses is awarded to the goalkeeper who was substituted on, whilst a full clean sheet is awarded to the goalkeeper who was on the field at the start of play. Goalkeepers with no clean sheets not included in the list.

RankNo.Nat.GoalkeeperA-LeagueFFA CupTotal
Regular seasonFinals series
11 Tom Glover3104
23 Dean Bouzanis3014
Total6118

References