Queensland Lions vs Melbourne City Verdict
Queensland Lions are in good form and have been firing in goals in the NPL and they are backed to score in this Round of 16 tie. However, I expect Melbourne City's A-League class to see them through to the quarter-finals.
- Lions have scored 1+ goal in their last 24 games
- Lions have won 12 of their last 13 games
- Lions have scored 51 goals in 21 NPL QLD games this season
- City have conceded 1+ goal in four of their last five games in all comps
Head To Head
This will be the first meeting between the two clubs.
Queensland Lions Form - Upset Secured
The Lions produced an excellent display to edge out Perth Glory in the Australia Cup R32 after a 0-0 stalemate at the end of normal time.
Jerson Lagos put the Lions in front in the 95th minute, but the QLD NPL leaders were forced into a shootout after Perth equalised 13 minutes later. The Lions scored all four of their spot kicks as Glory missed two to secure a famous victory.
It backs up what has been a dominant NPL campaign for the Lions - they've won 16 of their 21 games, wrapped up the minor premiership and defeated Peninsula 1-0 and Brisbane Roar U23s 4-2 since toppling Perth.
Melbourne City Form - Easy Progress
City endured an inconsistent A-League campaign but did enough to sneak into the finals, finishing sixth after balancing domestic commitments with the AFC Champions League.
Aurelio Vidmar's side found form at the perfect time, winning its final four regular-season matches to secure a place in the top six.
Their finals campaign was short-lived, however. City suffered a 2-1 defeat to Adelaide before their season came to an end in a penalty shootout loss to eventual champions Auckland.
City returned to competitive action in the Australia Cup R32, easing past Northern NSW NPL side Weston Bears 3-0. Lawrence Wong put City ahead before fellow Academy graduates Besian Kutleshi and Medin Memet also got on the scoresheet in a dominant win.
The club's best Australia Cup result was in 2016 when City secured the silverware, while they also finished runner-up in 2019.