Florin Berenguer is set to return to the City side after a calf injury.
Melbourne City has been given a boost ahead of its banana skin game against Central Coast on Wednesday night with the return to action of French midfielder Florin Berenguer.
City has been on a good run of results since the imbroglio with star striker Bruno Fornaroli began in round five.
Warren Joyce's side has lost only once (to league leaders Perth in round seven) and has won five of the other six games it has played since that November defeat in Brisbane, drawing the other in the Christmas derby against Melbourne Victory.
Berenguer last played in the round six win over Newcastle at AAMI Park but sustained a calf injury in the lead-up to the trip to Western Australia.
The former Sochaux and Dijon attacking midfielder will be on the bench in Gosford but can be expected to play some role during the 90 minutes as City hunt three points to stay in touch with the pack chasing Glory.
Joyce will be forced to juggle his starting line-up. Dario Vidosic, on the bench for the win over Brisbane last Friday, has not come up and will not travel, while defender Harrison Delbridge is suspended after picking up a fifth yellow card of the season.
Riley McGree, who limped off inside the first ten minutes of the 1-0 win over Roar with a knock to the knee, has recovered in time and will travel north.
Ritchie De Laet, the Belgian marquee player who has been playing through niggling injuries, is likely to start in a game that City will start as hot favourites.
"Dario is still struggling, he won't travel, Delbridge is suspended. De Laet has got better, there was more concern about him four or five weeks ago, he is good to start, we have had to manage him through games really," Joyce explained.
"McGree has come through OK. He got a knock on the knee, he has had modified training on Monday and has trained Tuesday. Dario was only partially fit Saturday but we were looking to start him in this game, so it's disappointing he is not available."
Joyce is confident that City will cover easily enough for Delbridge, who has been a regular partner for first-choice centre-half Bart Schenkeveld.
"Curtis [Good, former Newcastle United and Socceroos defender] played last week, we have got other full-backs in Nathaniel [Atkinson] and De Laet and we have worked on a couple of things."
Joyce sprang a huge surprise in the win over Brisbane by playing De Laet up forward. It was an example of lateral thinking –normally a full-back, De Laet started his career as a striker – but also an example of the club's need to find scoring options now that Fornaroli's time at the club looks to be coming to a close.
De Laet rewarded the coach's judgment by scoring the only goal of the game, but Joyce was coy as to whether he would repeat the exercise.
"It was needs must, but it doesn't worry me about playing him up there because he started there as a kid, and I have seen him play there before," Joyce said.
"The movement up front is quite natural for him. We have got to juggle around what numbers we have got."
Berenguer should add to the team's attacking options. The 29-year-old was bought to play either as a wide man or as an attacking midfielder, and Joyce believes he can add potency and creativity to the City front three.
"Florin will only be off the bench. He's worked really hard, he's a good pro, he doesn't have [to] push himself and do everything he can to be at his maximum. He pushes himself in the gym, he works hard on his running too, he's like a new signing for us.
"We are looking for creativity and goals [from him]. It's not easy adapting to this country. He's made an impact … now it's there for him to kick off for the second half of the season."
This is a game City cannot afford to cough up. The Mariners are winless this season but have looked more dangerous in recent weeks, taking a 2-0 lead against high-flying Wellington last weekend only to lose 3-2 after having Kye Rowles was sent off early in the game.
"You don't overlook them. The last two games they have played really well. They totally dominated the game against Sydney until the sending off [of Kalifa Cisse] and they played very well against Wellington as well," Joyce said.
"There is a lot of freedom about some of the players, they have nothing to lose, they are playing with freedom, we have to be at our absolute max."
Meanwhile, City's search for a striker continues. In recent days they have now been linked with Adam Taggart, Andrew Nabbout, Jamie Maclaren, Tomi Juric and Andy Keogh, but no deal has been completed, Joyce said.
Source: Read Full Article