Melbourne Victory strikers Archie Thompson and Robbie Kruse are both rated 50/50 chances to be fit for Friday night’s Hyundai A-League clash against North Queensland at Etihad Stadium.
Melbourne Victory strikers Archie Thompson and Robbie Kruse are both rated 50/50 chances to be fit for Friday night’s Hyundai A-League clash against North Queensland at Etihad Stadium.
Thompson is attempting to recover from an ankle injury that kept him out of Friday night’s loss to the Gold Coast while Kruse suffered a shoulder injury and had to leave the field following an off-the ball clash with Steve Pantelidis which resulted in the Gold Coast defender copping a five match suspension.
Victory football operations manager Gary Cole says the club will do everything in its power to have its two top strikers fit to face the Fury in a game that Melbourne must win to retain its place in the top two ahead of the huge last round showdown with third-placed Sydney FC in Sydney.
“Both Robbie and Archie are going to have MRI’s today jut to finalise our diagnosis,” Cole said following training at Monash University on Tuesday.
“Right now really both players are 50/50 but with fingers crossed our medical staff will do everything they can get to the boys on the track for Friday night.”
Victory’s options in terms of replacements are limited should Thompson and Kruse fail to come up with Mate Dugandzic having already been ruled out with a knee strain.
And with Danny Allsopp and Ney Fabiano no longer at the club, Victory’s only specialist back-up striker is youth league striker Nathan Elasi.
However Cole has ruled out Victory signing an experienced striker on a short-term deal and is confident Melbourne still has enough potency in its team to score goals, even if both Thompson and Kruse are ruled out of Friday’s game.
“We are comfortable with where we are at,” Cole said.
“We believe this is the best and deepest squad we have had and that is not a throw away line – we mean it.”
“We have got two clear cut designated strikers (in Thompson and Kruse) and we have got a range of (other) people that can play up front.”
Cole said Carlos Hernandez, Nick Ward, Tom Pondeljak and new signing Marvin Angulo were all capable of taking on extra attacking responsibility in the absence of Kruse and Thompson.
“So we are quite comfortable with where we are at,” he said.
