After failing to capitalise on a host of chances, Melbourne Victory boss Joe Montemurro paid testament to the drilled philosophy of a Canberra United side which overran his side in midfield.
While their opponents did have the lion’s share of possession, they still managed to fashion enough chances to take something from the clash, and Montemurro hinted that taking chances is something his side had to improve on.
He also conceded that while they weren’t able to keep up in the first term, a shift in mentality and tactics allowed them to match their opponents and slowly make their way into the contest.
“Look, when [Canberra] were coming out centrally, they left one player out very wide and were able to swing our defence around,” Montemurro said.
“What we did was reduce them coming out of the middle a lot easier and that’s when it seemed to turn our way.
“That was one of the major problems, they were able to get in behind our first line of defence and attack us centrally via midfield.”
Focusing on his own game, Montemurro admitted that they didn’t have the width in their play required to get behind a disciplined Canberra defence.
“I think the first half as we were advancing into the front third, we were a bit too narrow. We didn’t give a bit of width where our midfielders could enter,” he said.
“That was a bit difficult. We fixed that in the second half, we got a little bit of width and created a couple of chances.
“Probably the first half, the lack of width in the attacking half was a problem.”
Melbourne Victory Women’s have an opportunity to redeem themselves next week when they square off against Adelaide United mid-week on Wednesday.