Melbourne City vs Macarthur Prediction: City Boys to get back to winning ways

Melbourne City host Macarthur in the A-League on Tuesday evening as the City Boys strive to close the gap on the top three after a mixed start to the campaign. Aurelio Vidmar's side will be eager to bounce back after conceding a stoppage time winner to Melbourne Victory in the local derby on Saturday and should look to take advantage of the swift turnaround.

Macarthur, meanwhile, are just a point behind champions City after beating Brisbane Roar 2-1 on Friday and can make it three games unbeaten in the A-League by avoiding defeat in Melbourne. Read on for my Melbourne City vs Macarthur predictions, as well as the latest team news and match odds.

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Team News

City will be without Mathew Leckie due to a hip injury, while Ben Mazzeo is sidelined with a muscle problem. Alessandro Lopane is unavailable due to an ankle issue.

Macarthur winger Sime Grzan is injured and so won't feature, while playmaker Chris Ikonomidis and defender Sebastian Krslovic have also been ruled out of Tuesday's clash.

Melbourne City vs Macarthur Odds

Melbourne City are 3/5 to win this A-League encounter, while Macarthur can be backed to claim a victory on the road at 18/5 and the draw is on offer at 11/4.

Both teams to score is priced at 8/11, while City forward Max Caputo is 7/2 to score the opening goal and Ji Dong-Won is 11/4 to net anytime.

Melbourne City to win @ 3/5

Melbourne City are in desperate need for some consistency if the team is to successfully defend its title crown.

The City Boys are currently on a run of DWLDWL and will swiftly have to start picking up successive victories if they are going to climb into the top three and push current leaders Auckland FC.

Saturday's derby day defeat against rivals Victory at AAMI Park was a blow, particularly losing the game in injury time and coach Vidmar will be looking for an instant reaction from his players.

Tuesday's visitors Macarthur have a similar record of winning, losing and drawing the last three and so sit just a point behind City.

The Bulls head into the fixture as underdogs, but that doesn't mean City will have an easy night as Macarthur will set out to frustrate the hosts and hope they too can nick a late goal like Victory.

Saying that, City should have enough quality and experience to get the job done and earn an important win on Tuesday.

With struggling Perth Glory visiting on Sunday, this represents a good opportunity for the team to get back on track.

Under 2.5 goals @ 1/1

City games have not been blessed with plenty of goals this season. In fact, only two goals have been scored in the team's last three matches, while the City Boys have scored more than one goal in just two games this season.

Six of the club's A-League encounters have featured under 2.5 goals since mid-October and so this could prove a smart pick for the clash against Macarthur.

No game involving the Bulls has seen more than 3.5 goals scored while five matches have seen Macarthur or their opponents drawing a blank.

Tuesday's game should be won by the hosts, but it will be a narrow triumph should they come out as victors.

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