Adelaide Untied have reclaimed third spot on the Isuzu UTE A-League table with a thumping 4-0 win over Perth Glory at Coopers Stadium.
Juan Muniz, Jonny Yull and Luke Duzel all scored quality individual goals for the Reds, before Luka Jovanovic put the result to bed after finishing off a brilliant team move just after the restart.
Luke Duzel’s second goal of the season after a powerful, weaving run put the icing on the cake for the Reds in stoppage time.
There was also some late drama when referee Shaun Evans brandished a red card to Perth’s Andriano Lebib, only to overturn the decision after being asked to review the call by the VAR.
Muniz opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a free kick that Glory keeper Matt Sutton won’t want to see again after Ethan Alagich was cut down by WIll Freney just outside Perth’s area.
Muniz’s curling left-footed shot was well hit and aimed expertly at the far post, but Sutton will be disappointed that he was able to get his top hand to the ball but not keep it out of the net.
Adam Taggart nearly answered immediately for the Glory, with Scott Wootton’s header back across goal from Perth’s own dead ball falling to the 21 time Socceroo who stabbed slightly wide.
Muniz and Yull then combined for another warning shot across Perth’s bows, with Sutton alert to the Spaniard’s chiseled ball behind the Glory and steaming out of his box to head away the danger.
Sutton was again in play for Yull’s 29th minute goal that put the Reds 2-0 up, although there much less he could do about it than Muniz’s free kick.
The chance was set up by a brilliant ball from Ryan White to Yaya Dukuly, who cracked his first time shot straight at Sutton.
The save rebounded out to Yull, whose Exocet missile of a half-volley would have travelled to Alice Springs had it not hit the roof of the net.
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Glory head coach Adam Griffiths was so perturbed by what he’d seen that he elected to make a rare first half tactical substitution, with Seb Despotovski replacing Trent Ostler.
The change didn’t turn Perth’s fortunes around in the remaining 15 minutes of the first half, and they failed to register a shot on target before the interval.
Things didn’t get much better for the visitors after the break, with Jovanovic taking just two minutes to add a third goal following a sweeping team play.
Alagich pinched the ball off Luca Tevere just outside Adelaide’s area and pushed it forward to Jovanovic 15 metres inside his own half, and he laid it off first time to Ryan White charging forward.
White took a couple of touches and found Dukuly who drove hard down the right and linked back up with the 20-year-old who had continued his run into the box.
The quality of Dukuly’s ball and White’s run drew Lebib across the danger, leaving White the relatively simple decision to cut the ball back to Jovanovic who had arrived at the six yard line for a tap in.
It was a brilliant move, and one that underlined both Adelaide’s free flowing philosophy in this game and their dominance of it.
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Shortly after the goal Lebib was shown a red card by Evans after reaching high to try and effect a clearance, managing to kick the ball as Adelaide sub Brody Burkitt got his head to it.
Evans was called to the VAR screen and after a lengthy review, overturned his oriignal decision and replaced the red card with one of a yellow hue.
The game looked like it was meandering to a close after that drama, but the Red Army were handed another reason to celebrate Duzel dribbled through a handful of tired Glory defenders and cracked a deflected finish past Sutton to make it Adelaide’s biggest win in the A-League since December 2024.
The win puts the Reds back above Sydney FC to third on the Isuzu UTE A-League table, just a goal behind second placed Auckland who also have amassed 29 points.
The Reds next have a road trip to take take on Melbourne Victory in the storied Original Rivalry game on Friday night, while Perth’s next assignment is a date with Brisbane Roar at Kayo Stadium next Saturday evening.
ALEX TOBIN MEDAL VOTES:
3. Jonny Yull
2. Juan Muniz
1. Ryan White
