One competitive fixture was all David Zdrilic needed to make a little bit of history, as he led the Glory to a 4-2 victory over Brisbane in Darwin.
It was the Glory’s first win in the Australia Cup since 2016, and means a place in the Round of 32 for the first time in five years.
Here’s what we discovered on Tuesday night and what we might expect when the Glory face Melbourne City at the Sam Kerr Football Centre next weekend.
Abdul Faisal looks the goods
When Abdul Faisal was announced as a new signing alongside Adam Bugarija, I didn’t know what to expect.
Stan Lazaridis set expectations high by likening him to Mo Salah and was confident he could make a big impact; he certainly did against the Roar.
The 19-year-old stepped up to take the penalty and confidently converted from the spot to give the Glory the lead.
Minutes later, he got his second with a brilliant finish to cap off a lightning counterattack from a Brisbane corner.
Even without the goals it was an impressive outing from the youngster, who always looked to take the game on and showcased his speed and agility with the ball at his feet.
His defensive work was also admirable, putting in the hard work Zdrilic wants to see from his players.
The style is taking shape
A new, distinctive style. High intensity attacking football. Actions speak louder than words, and we saw that style in action against the Roar.
The Glory were more dynamic and threatening in front of goalthan their opponents, even with significantly less possession.
18 shots from 36 final third entries and an xG of 2.99, compared to Brisbane’s 14 shots from 40 entries and an xG of 0.94.
The high intensity press was evident from the get-go, led bythe lone striker David Williams, the hard working Faisal and the always energetic Khoa Ngo.
Zdrilic has been at the helm for four weeks now. That was just a taste of what’s to come. With more fine tuning in training and as cohesion builds with the playing group, seeing this style in full flow will be an absolute joy to behold.
Elder statesmen lead the way
David Williams and Josh Risdon were Perth’s two oldest starters, and were two of the Glory’s best on ground in the victory.
Williams nabbed the equaliser, had the shot which led to the penalty and put in a peach of a cross for Nathaniel Blair to put the game completely out of Brisbane’s reach.
That’s without mentioning his defensive efforts and combination play with Faisal in the first half. A superb all-round performance from the 36-year-old.
Risdon was involved at both ends, assisting the equaliser for Williams in the first half and then making a brilliant goal line clearance in the second to keep the Glory in the lead.
His forward runs provided an extra threat down the right hand side; two goal contributions already and with the licence to go forward in this system, expect him to register a few more during the course of the season.
Defence remains the weakness
Shoring up the defence is the main priority now. In both games thus far, the Glory have conceded twice.
It could have been three if not for Risdon’s effort on the line. More of Brisbane’s chances came in the second half when they went down to 10 men, and they outperformed their expected goals.
At the moment the defence still looks shaky. Adding an experienced centre back to the squad should help to alleviate the problem and provide one of the final puzzle pieces to David Zdrilic’s squad.
Looking forward to the Round of 32, City are a more potent side than Brisbane and will make the most of their opportunities.
We’ll have to be sharper, but we should go into the game with confidence off the back of the performance in Darwin.
It should be an entertaining game at the very least, and will reveal just how well the Glory stack up against a top A-League side.
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