Danny Vukovic’s Perth Glory couldn’t beat Adelaide last season – including in the inaugural Westfield FFA Cup Final - but with his new club Melbourne Victory the keeper is confident of Cup redemption.
The reigning Hyundai A-League champions meet the reigning Westfield FFA Cup holders in an eye-catching quarter final at AAMI Park on Tuesday night.
And after being on the end of loss after loss in the Glory goal last season, Victory's off-season acquisition has a realistic chance of breaking that losing run against the talented Reds.
Either way, it'll be a superb advertisement for FFA Cup football.
“Wonderful team, Adelaide have kept a core group and they find a way to win games,” Vukovic, 30, told www.theffacup.com.au
“As a Perth Glory player last season we had no answers against them [Adelaide] in the season, even in pre-season and of course the FFA Cup.
“The way we matched up against them they always had the edge.They always found ways to break us down.
"Often Eugene [Galekovic] didn’t have to make a save, that’s how much they dominated us.”
Victoria’s secret: why it’s an FFA Cup hotbed
Vukovic says the more attack-minded Victory will enable him to perhaps rewrite that Glory losing ledger on Tuesday night.
“Thankfully ... here at Victory, we’re an attacking team first and foremost,” he said.
“We’re looking to score goals at all costs and I’m quietly confident it’ll be another successful year for the club.”
Vukovic said last season’s FFA Cup final loss at Cooper’s Stadium was an arm wrestle made even more difficult by a red card to one of his defenders.
“Their run in the FFA Cup was also a lot harder than our run at Perth so they probably deserved it in the end.
“It was a final we were never really in. They didn’t have too many chances either. It was a typical final, both teams didn’t want to open up too much," he said of the 1-0 win courtesy of Cirio's match winner on 67 minutes.
“Rizzo” [full back Josh Risdon] got a second yellow card and from there they got the momentum and scored."
Victory will be well prepared for Tuesday’s FFA Cup blockbuster. It's one of three domestic trophies they are desperate to win, while ACL group qualification is the fourth pillar in their ambitious plans.
Vukovic, as you'd expect, is reveling in the professionalism at the Hyundai A-League champions.
It's a club where he arrives for training two hours prior training for extensive pre-hab routine before each session and follows that with a full recovery session.
“Perhaps I haven’t been as mindful of my body and things like that in the past," he said.
"But here you’re given the environment to prepare like that. It’s going to improve me as a professional.
“They’ve created a no-excuse environment here.”
