Sydney FC vs Melbourne Victory Tips & Prediction - Sky Blues to prevail in low-scoring affair

Leichhardt Oval - one of Sydney's favourite suburban grounds - will host a Big Blue showdown for the very first time as two of Australia's biggest football clubs lock horns. Sydney FC come into this encounter on a three-game winning streak, their best run since January 2024, while Victory have endured a slow start to the campaign, winning just one of their four games - and that came against rock bottom Perth Glory.

Sydney will be hoping Paul Okon-Engstler and Al Hassan Toure can back up after the pair made their Socceroos debuts against Venezuela in the USA earlier this week, while Victory fans will be eager to see if Spanish superstar Juan Mata can continue his impressive start to the campaign. The best bet for this showdown has to be Under 3.5 goals, which has landed in the last seven Big Blues, while both teams have gone under more often than not to start the season. In terms of a winner, Sydney have started the season better and with home ground advantage at Leichhardt, they should have the edge.

Sydney leads the all-time H2H with Victory 24-21, with 21 draws. Not much has separated the sides in their last seven meetings dating back to 2023, with Sydney and Victory registering three wins apiece with one draw.

It was a slow start to the season for Sydney as they suffered a 2-1 loss on the road to Adelaide, but they've bounced back strongly and head into Round 5 as one of the form teams in the competition.

Indeed, it's Sydney's best winning run in the A-League in almost two years, with Ufuk Talay's side heading into this clash following three straight victories.

The Sky Blues were too good for the Mariners in a comfortable 2-0 triumph before crushing Australia Cup champions Newcastle Jets 4-1, with Al Hassan Toure scoring his maiden A-League hat-trick.

Sydney made it three wins on the trot after toppling Macarthur 2-0 before the break, with defender Marcel Tisserand scoring his first goal since 2020 before Joe Lolley netted his second goal of the season late to seal all three points.

Sydney FC squad: 1. Gus HOEFSLOOT (GK),  4. Jordan COURTNEY-PERKINS, 5.  Alex GRANT, 7.  Piero QUISPE, 8.  Wataru KAMIJO, 9.  Victor CAMPUZANO, 10. Joe LOLLEY, 11. Abel WALATEE, 12. Harrison DEVENISH-MEARES (GK), 13. Pat WOOD, 16. Joel KING, 17. Ben GARUCCIO, 20. Tiago QUINTAL, 22. Mathias MACALLISTER, 23. Rhyan GRANT, 24. Paul OKON JR, 32. Marcel TISSERAND, 35. Al Hassan TOURE, 36. Rhys YOULLEY, 41. Alexandar POPOVIC

With a big squad overhaul and various changes, this slow start for Victory shouldn't be entirely unexpected - but whether they can turn it around soon remains to be seen.

After going down in last season's Grand Final to bitter rivals Melbourne City, Victory have started the new campaign with a 1-1-2 record, languishing in ninth spot on the ladder after four rounds.

Victory began the season with a 0-0 stalemate against Auckland before suffering a worrying 5-2 defeat at the hands of Newcastle.

Arthur Diles' side managed to register their first win of the season by beating last-placed Perth 2-0, but the joy was short-lived, with Victory once again going down to rivals City 2-0 last week in the Grand Final rematch.

In some bright news, former Chelsea and Man Untied star Juan Mata has been playing his best football since joining the A-League, scoring against Perth before starting against City and creating several dangerous chances.

Melbourne Victory squad: 2. Jason DAVIDSON, 3. Adama TRAORE, 4. Lachlan JACKSON, 8. Jordi VALADON, 9. Nikolaos VERGOS, 10. Denis GENREAU, 11. Clerismario SANTOS RODRIGUES, 14. Matthew GRIMALDI, 15. Sebastian ESPOSITO, 16. Joshua INSERRA, 17. Nishan VELUPILLAY, 19. Jing REEC, 21. Roderick MIRANDA, 22. Joshua RAWLINS, 23. Keegan JELACIC, 25. Jack DUNCAN, 27. Louis D’ARRIGO, 34. Xavier STELLA, 40. Jack WARSHAWSKY, 64. Juan MATA