Auckland FC v Perth Glory: A-League Sunday preview

Auckland FC have enjoyed a dream first season in the A-League and it is set to continue on Sunday when they entertain a Perth Glory side who are stranded at the foot of the ladder as the regular season nears an end.

The Black Knights have lost just two of the 24 games they have played to date and the minor premiership is theirs, with head coach Steve Corica having seen his side go unbeaten in their last 13 matches.

However, they cannot afford to be complacent as their last defeat came at the hands of the Glory back in early January, when a Jaylan Pearman goal proved decisive in a 1-0 win for the hosts at nib Stadium.

Auckland FC v Perth Glory betting preview

Port eager to retain focus

Things could not have panned out any better for Auckland in their inaugural season in the A-League and Corica even has the luxury of a fully fit squad to choose from this clash with Glory.

Of course, he will not want to see any sort of let-up from his players with finals just around the corner and he will no doubt have been delighted with a 2-0 win at Melbourne Victory last time out, having seen his side draw five of their previous six.

One of the key figures in the Black Knights' success this season has been on-loan Bournemouth goalkeeper Alex Paulsen, who has kept 11 clean sheets across the 24 A-League games played.

The 22-year-old former Wellington Phoenix gloveman is not expected to stay with Auckland next season, with Corica admitting to the New Zealand Herald: "I'm not sure where he's going to go next season, but I'm pretty sure it won't be with us. He's had a great year."

Paulsen is 2.20 to keep another clean sheet on Sunday, with Auckland 4.33 to win by a two-goal margin.

At the other end of the pitch the goals have been shared around, with Logan Rogerson and Guillermo May their joint top scorers on eight, one more than Neyder Moreno.

Uruguayan May netted a late clincher in the 2-0 success at Victory last time out and he is 1.72 to score at anytime against Glory on Sunday.

Glory boosted by Reds romp

While Auckland have enjoyed a dream campaign to date, Glory have endured a torrid time and are on course to finish bottom of the ladder for the third time in four seasons.

Head coach David Zdrilic looks set to hand a first-team debut to teenage striker Sebastian Despotovski at Go Media Stadium, while he is without the injured trio of Zach Lisolajski, Lachie Wales and David Williams.

However, his side come into this game on the back of a thumping 4-1 home victory over Adelaide United, which was their first win since their shock defeat of Auckland back in January and ended a run of four straight losses.

Pearman, the matchwinner against the Black Knights in Auckland, scored twice against the Reds to take his tally to three in his last two appearances and he is 6.00 to find the net at anytime on Sunday.

Socceroos striker Adam Taggart was also on target against in the win over Adelaide to take his tally for the season to eight and the experienced frontman is 3.25 to score again in this match.

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Auckland FC v Perth Glory odds

Auckland FC - 1.33
Draw - 5.75
Perth Glory - 7.50

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.