Wellington Phoenix FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers FC, A League 2023-24 REGULAR SEASON

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A League · 2023-24

Wellington Phoenix FC

2 – 0

Full Time

Western Sydney Wanderers FC

Sat 23 Dec 2023 · 04:30 UTC Wellington Regional Stadium HT 45' · FT 45'

Alex Rufer 31' Y

Y 75' Nicolas Milanovic

Overview

Match Preview

Wellington Phoenix FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers FC — A League at Wellington Regional Stadium.

Wellington Phoenix FC 26 games · 33 pts (2025/26)
Western Sydney Wanderers FC 26 games · 21 pts (2025/26)

Match Details

Referee Shaun Evans
Referee Casey Reibelt

18 games this season 🟨 0.0/game ⚽ 3.1 goals/game

Standings

#	Team	P	Pts
1	Newcastle United Jets FC	26	48
2	Adelaide United FC	26	43
3	Auckland FC	26	42
4	Melbourne Victory FC	26	40
5	Sydney FC	26	39
6	Melbourne City FC	26	38
7	Macarthur FC	26	34
8	Wellington Phoenix FC	26	33
9	Central Coast Mariners FC	26	32
10	Perth Glory FC	26	31
11	Brisbane Roar FC	26	26
12	Western Sydney Wanderers FC	26	21

Head-to-Head

Wellington Phoenix FC 19 games · Avg 3.2 goals Western Sydney Wanderers FC

Last 5 meetings

2023-12-23 Wellington Phoenix FC 2–0 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 2023-10-22 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 0–0 Wellington Phoenix FC 2023-04-21 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 4–0 Wellington Phoenix FC 2022-12-10 Wellington Phoenix FC 1–1 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 2022-05-05 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 1–2 Wellington Phoenix FC

Recent Form

Wellington Phoenix FC

Date	Opponent	H/A	Score	Result
23 Dec	Western Sydney Wanderers FC	H	2–0	W
18 Dec	Macarthur FC	A	3–0	W
09 Dec	Newcastle United Jets FC	H	0–3	L
02 Dec	Western United FC	A	1–0	W
25 Nov	Melbourne City FC	H	1–0	W
10 Nov	Melbourne Victory FC	A	1–1	D

Western Sydney Wanderers FC

Date	Opponent	H/A	Score	Result
23 Dec	Wellington Phoenix FC	A	0–2	L
15 Dec	Adelaide United FC	H	1–0	W
10 Dec	Melbourne Victory FC	H	3–4	L
01 Dec	Brisbane Roar FC	A	2–2	D
25 Nov	Sydney FC	A	1–0	W
11 Nov	Perth Glory FC	H	2–0	W

Season Stats

Wellington Phoenix FC		Western Sydney Wanderers FC
#8	Position	#12
33	Points	21
26	Played	26
9 / 6 / 11	W / D / L	5 / 6 / 15
36	Scored	27
48	Conceded	43
-12	GD	-16
1.27	PPG	0.81
35%	Win %	19%

Key Stats

63% Both Teams to Score
H2H (19 games)

68% Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history

15% Clean Sheets
Wellington Phoenix FC this season

19% Clean Sheets
Western Sydney Wanderers FC this season

Wellington Phoenix FC are 8th (33 pts). Western Sydney Wanderers FC are 12th (21 pts).

Goal Timing (This Season)

Wellington Phoenix FC

0-15

–/1

16-30

1/2

31-45

–/2

46-60

1/–

61-75

–/–

76+

1/2

■ Scored ■ Conceded

Western Sydney Wanderers FC

0-15

–/–

16-30

–/3

31-45

1/1

46-60

–/2

61-75

–/1

76+

–/2

■ Scored ■ Conceded

Top Scorers (This Season)

Wellington Phoenix FC

Ifeanyi Eze	10 G	1 A
Carlo Armiento	5 G	2 A
Corban Piper	4 G	4 A

Western Sydney Wanderers FC

Bozhidar Kraev	5 G	2 A
Ryan Fraser	4 G	3 A
Brandon Borrello	4 G	2 A
Kosta Barbarouses	4 G	1 A

Events

Match Events

0' The game is set. Western Sydney Wanderers FC kicks off things out of here…
5' Supporters expect more eagerness from Oscar Priestman, as he is very good at scoring at Wellington Regional Stadium with 0 goals in the last 0 games.
10' It looks surprising Western Sydney Wanderers FC does not make any changes. Valentino Yuel has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
15' Marcelo needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Red cards this season.
20' Spectators do not have much to choose from both teams. The sides had several scoring chances but they still need a bit more than just a sight of a goal.
25' Western Sydney Wanderers FC have won 309 goals from 205 games. They will be desperate to add to that tally today.
30' The 30-year-old Alex Rufer has been sensational this season — 0 goals and 0 assists is a remarkable return.
31' The referee has no hesitation. Alex Rufer is booked for Wellington Phoenix FC — card on 31.
36' The Array continues to deliver drama. Both Wellington Phoenix FC and Western Sydney Wanderers FC are desperate not to drop points on matchday .
41' Both keepers have barely been tested. Wellington Phoenix FC and Western Sydney Wanderers FC are cancelling each other out in the centre of the park.
46' With 3 assists to his name this season, Tim Payne is clearly more than just a goal scorer for Western Sydney Wanderers FC.
51' Wellington Phoenix FC are happy to let the opposition have the ball in their own half. The trap is set.
56' Spectators are craving for more action. Both teams play very cautiously. They need to put some more energy.
61' We are waiting for someone to take the initiative. Who will be the first to commit to attack?
66' The Western Sydney Wanderers FC bench stirs into life. Valentino Yuel is withdrawn and Alex Badolato gets his opportunity.
71' Wellington Phoenix FC are enjoying more possession but struggling to find a way through a disciplined Western Sydney Wanderers FC backline.
74' Mohamed Al-Taay is replacing Nicholas Pennington for the Wellington Phoenix FC side.
75' Nicolas Milanovic was booked on 75.
78' Lukas Kelly-Heald gets the nod from Wellington Phoenix FC. He replaces Sam Sutton and will look to change the dynamic.
83' Wellington Phoenix FC are keeping things exceptionally tight at the back. It will take something special to break them down.
86' It is a substitution in Western Sydney Wanderers FC team. Aidan Simmons is replaced by Tate Russell on 86 minute.
87' It is a substitution in Western Sydney Wanderers FC team. Marcus Antonsson is replaced by Lachlan Brook on 87 minute.
90' The supporters are chanting for Isaac Hughes. He replaces Kosta Barbarouses on 90 minute.
The points are shared — Wellington Phoenix FC 2-0 Western Sydney Wanderers FC. Honours even.

Lineups

Wellington Phoenix FC Lineups

Starting XI

10
David Ball ↓ Luke Supyk 74'
4
Scott Wootton
7
Kosta Barbarouses ↓ Isaac Hughes 90'
14
Alex Rufer
11
Bozhidar Kraev
6
Tim Payne
19
Sam Sutton ↓ Lukas Kelly-Heald 78'
40
Alex Paulsen
3
Finn Surman
15
Nicholas Pennington ↓ Mohamed Al-Taay 74'
8
Ben Old

Bench

24
Oskar van Hattum
25
Jack Duncan
12
Mohamed Al-Taay ↑ 74'
26
Isaac Hughes ↑ 90'
18
Lukas Kelly-Heald ↑ 78'
5
Fin Conchie
23
Luke Supyk ↑ 74'

Coach Giancarlo Italiano

Western Sydney Wanderers FC Lineups

Starting XI

Bench

2
Gabriel Cleur ↑ 74'
13
Tate Russell ↑ 86'
17
Lachlan Brook ↑ 87'
37
Alex Badolato ↑ 66'
40
Jack Gibson
29
Dylan Scicluna
39
Marcus Younis ↑ 74'

Coach Mark Rudan

H2H

H2H Top Scorers

Player	Goals
Keanu Baccus	3
Tomer Hemed	3
Ulises Davila	3
Roy Krishna	3
Kwame Yeboah	3
Bruce Kamau	2
Bozhidar Kraev	2
Brandon Borrello	2

Head to Head

Wellington Phoenix FC Form

2023-12-23 Wellington Phoenix FC 2–0 Western Sydney Wanderers FC W 2023-12-18 Macarthur FC 0–3 Wellington Phoenix FC W 2023-12-09 Wellington Phoenix FC 0–3 Newcastle United Jets FC L 2023-12-02 Western United FC 0–1 Wellington Phoenix FC W 2023-11-25 Wellington Phoenix FC 1–0 Melbourne City FC W 2023-11-10 Melbourne Victory FC 1–1 Wellington Phoenix FC D

Western Sydney Wanderers FC Form

2023-12-23 Wellington Phoenix FC 2–0 Western Sydney Wanderers FC L 2023-12-15 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 1–0 Adelaide United FC W 2023-12-10 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 3–4 Melbourne Victory FC L 2023-12-01 Brisbane Roar FC 2–2 Western Sydney Wanderers FC D 2023-11-25 Sydney FC 0–1 Western Sydney Wanderers FC W 2023-11-11 Western Sydney Wanderers FC 2–0 Perth Glory FC W

Predictions

Prediction accuracy

2 / 4

1.54 Wellington Phoenix FC xG

Expected Goals

Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo

1.17 Western Sydney Wanderers FC xG

I would bet for: Markets are evenly balanced — no clear value pick.

Match Result

✓ Correct

Wellington Phoenix FC48% Draw26% Western Sydney Wanderers FC26%

Actual: Wellington Phoenix FC win

Both Teams to Score

✗ Wrong

Yes55% 0% No45%

Avg goals/match: 2.71

Actual: No — clean sheet

Over / Under Goals

✗ O/U 2.5

Line	Over	Under
± 0.5	91%	9%
± 1.5	75%	25%
± 2.5	50%	50%
± 3.5	29%	71%
± 4.5	14%	86%

Double Chance

Wellington Phoenix FC or Draw

74%

Draw or Western Sydney Wanderers FC

52%

Wellington Phoenix FC or Western Sydney Wanderers FC

74%

Half-Time Result

✓ Correct

Wellington Phoenix FC32% Draw47% Western Sydney Wanderers FC21%

Actual: Draw at HT

Correct Score

✓ In top 12

1 – 1

12.9%

1 – 0

9.3%

2 – 1

8.9%

0 – 0

8.6%

2 – 0

Actual

0 – 1

6.8%

1 – 2

6.7%

2 – 2

5.2%

3 – 1

4.6%

0 – 2

4.5%

3 – 0

3.9%

3 – 2

2.8%

Asian Handicap — Wellington Phoenix FC

Handicap	Wellington Phoenix FC covers	Push	Western Sydney Wanderers FC covers
-2.5	9%	—	91%
-2	9%	14%	77%
-1.5	23%	—	77%
-1	23%	21%	56%
-0.5	44%	—	56%
+0.5	72%	—	28%
+1	72%	16%	12%
+1.5	88%	—	12%
+2	88%	8%	4%
+2.5	96%	—	4%

Clean Sheet

Wellington Phoenix FC keeps clean sheet

32% ✗

Western Sydney Wanderers FC keeps clean sheet

22% ✓

Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.