Adelaide United have finished second in the Isuzu UTE A-League regular season after a 98th minute winner from Luka Jovanovic saw them defeat Melbourne City 2-1 at AAMI Park.
Destined to meet again in week one of the Isuzu UTE A-League Finals Series, Jovanovic’s double off the bench saw Airton Andrioli’s side leapfrog Auckland FC into second spot on the ladder.
As such, the Reds will now have the week off ahead of a two-legged showdown with the winner of the highest ranked Elimination Final whilst also securing themselves a lucrative spot in the AFC Champions League Elite playoffs for next season.
Meanwhile Melbourne City will now face an Elimination Final showdown with Auckland FC at Go Media Stadium in Week One of the Isuzu UTE A-League Finals Series.
Harry Crawford almost gave Adelaide a dream start at AAMI Park inside five minutes as he robbed Samuel Souprayen of the ball on the edge of the City box but struck the foot of the post in what was a huge let-off for the home side.
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Despite that early scare City charged into the lead in the 17th minute and it was the in-form Marcus Younis who lashed an unstoppable strike into the far top corner from the right edge of the box to make it 1-0 to the home side.
Buoyed by his fine run of form, Younis then attempted an audacious acrobatic scissor kick from inside the six yard box which slammed into the side netting.
Aurelio Vidmar’s side were dealt an injury blow on the approach to half time as experienced defender Souprayen hobbled off down the tunnel and was replaced by Harrison Delbridge.
A peripheral figure on the night, Brazilian star Anselmo de Moraes was inches away from levelling things up for Adelaide in the 59th minute but saw his close range header flicked out for a corner thanks to some excellent defending by Delbridge.
Reds and Socceroos fans witnessed a very welcome sight in the 77th minute as Craig Goodwin made his long-awaited return from a groin injury – and he made an immediate impact.
Less than 60 seconds after entering the field Goodwin swung his boot at a knock down from Pangiotis Kikianis inside the City box, and while Goodwin’s first touch of the game proved to be a scuffed shot it bounced kindly towards the unmarked Luka Jovanovic who thumped home from close range.
Destined to end in a draw, the game burst into life right at the death as a foul by Jay Barnett on Younis sparked an all-in brawl on the touchline with several players receiving yellow cards, one of which was Jovanovic, and that would prove to be key.
Players scuffle during the final stages of the game
Clearing a late City freekick Adelaide charged forward in the eighth minute of what was meant to be four minutes added on and when substitute Ryan White picked out Jovanovic inside the box the young forward prodded the ball home to not only win Adelaide the game, but also claim a share of this season’s Golden Boot.
However Jovanovic will now miss the first leg of Adelaide United’s semi-final showdown after he was shown a second yellow card for taking his shirt off in the celebrations.
