Overview
- Mata opened the scoring with a curling free-kick in the 34th minute at Allianz Stadium before substitute Charles Nduka doubled Victory’s lead.
- Sydney FC leveled with a rapid response as Apostolos Stamatelopoulos scored in the 73rd minute and Ahmet Arslan struck two minutes later.
- Fernandes posted his live reaction from Manchester United’s training ground with Harry Maguire, captioning that they “just knew” Mata would score from that range.
- After the match, Mata told the A-League’s official account he hopes Fernandes nets a similar free-kick in United’s next game.
- The 37-year-old’s form remains strong, with four goals and 10 assists in his first 19 Victory appearances and a recent run of three goals and three assists in four matches.