The Wellington Phoenix face their first trip across the ditch under head coach Chris Greenacre this Friday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A high-flying Adelaide United team await at Coopers Stadium, though the Nix will take heart from a win and a draw in their two previous meetings this season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Greenacre is embracing the challenge of a game at one of the loudest stadiums in the A-League.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d probably rephrase it, it\u2019s a place you want to go on a Friday night,\u201d he told media pre-match. \u201cI\u2019m a big fan of Friday night football.<\/p>\n
\u201cCoopers Stadium in general has a great atmosphere, it\u2019s often bouncing. We\u2019re really excited by the challenge.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou stress to the young players, these are the games you want to play in, where the crowd are close to the pitch, the atmosphere is electric, these are the environments you want to play in.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re a good side, especially at home, but it\u2019s our job to go and try and turn that crowd. It\u2019s up to us to put in a solid performance and try and change that mentality.\u201d<\/p>\n Last week\u2019s 1-0 loss to Sydney was frustrating for the new head coach, but there were plenty of positives to take out of the performance in the short week before facing Adelaide.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously things don\u2019t change overnight. We reviewed the Sydney game, there were parts of the game I was really pleased with, there were other parts I know we need to improve in.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn such a small timeframe, it\u2019s important to show the players the stuff you were really pleased with, and in a simple term, you recognise the moment.<\/p>\n \u201cThey can see that if we do get it right, we have the opportunity to create chances. It\u2019s just giving them confidence to do that and execute that.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve looked at our gameplan to try and do the same against Adelaide.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a quick turnaround so we haven\u2019t had a lot of time, but that\u2019s the cards that we\u2019re dealt.\u201d<\/p>\n There is mixed news on the availability front, with captain Alex Rufer suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season against Sydney.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously he\u2019s our captain, our leader, and what he brings to a dressing room and the field, his quality as a footballer, he brings that consistency and patience.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat will be a miss for us, but it means that the other players have to raise their game so that doesn\u2019t become an issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a great opportunity for everyone grinding in together and making sure we have a positive impact.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Friday will hopefully see the return of both Tim Payne from a hamstring injury and top scorer Ifeanyi Eze from suspension.<\/p>\n \u201cTim Payne has travelled, and he\u2019ll play a part. We\u2019re waiting on a couple of bits with him.<\/p>\n \u201c[Eze\u2019s] shown a different sort of prospect to what people have seen before.<\/p>\n \u201cHis workrate for the team is absolutely phenomenal, he\u2019s got pace to burn, the unpredictability about him makes him a difficult prospect to handle at time.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s scored some terrific goals this year.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The round 20 Isuzu UTE A-League match between Adelaide United and the Wellington Phoenix is scheduled to kick off at Coopers Stadium in Adelaide at 9.35pm Friday, and will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sport 4 in New Zealand, and on Paramount+ in Australia.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Most recent meeting: <\/strong>11 January 2026 \u2013 Wellington Phoenix 2 Adelaide United 2<\/p>\n All-time A-League head-to-head:<\/strong> Phoenix 13W, Adelaide 24W & 16D.<\/p>\n Wellington Phoenix squad<\/strong> (two to be omitted):<\/em> 1. Josh OLUWAYEMI (gk), 3. Corban PIPER, 4. Manjrekar JAMES, 6. Tim PAYNE, 7. Ifeanyi EZE, 8. Paulo RETRE, 10. Nikola MILEUSNIC, 11. Carlo ARMIENTO, 12. Dan EDWARDS, 15. Isaac HUGHES, 16. Sander KARTUM, 18. Lukas KELLY-HEALD, 20. Ramy NAJJARINE, 23. Luke SUPYK, 25. Kazuki NAGASAWA, 27. Matt SHERIDAN, 28. Bill TUILOMA, 29. Luke BROOKE-SMITH, 30. Alby KELLY-HEALD (gk), 37. Anaru CASSIDY. Adelaide United squad<\/strong>: TBC<\/p>\n Cover photo: WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND \u2013 MARCH 01: Phoenix players form a huddle during the round 19 A-League Men match between Wellington Phoenix and Sydney FC at Hnry Stadium, on March 01, 2026, in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Unavailable: 9. Sarpreet SINGH (injured), 14. Alex RUFER (suspended) 19. Nathan WALKER (injured).<\/p>\n
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