2020–21 Wellington Phoenix FC season

The 2020–21 season will be Wellington Phoenix's 14th season since its establishment in 2007. The club will be participating in the A-League for the 14th time.

Wellington Phoenix
2020–21 season
ChairmanRob Morrison
ManagerUfuk Talay
StadiumWIN Stadium
(Due to Coronavirus travel restrictions)

Pre-season

On 27 August 2020, it was announced that Liberato Cacace had signed with Belgian club Sint-Truidense after they had paid a transfer fee of $2,100,000.[1] On 6 September, the Phoenix announced that Callum McCowatt signed with Danish club Helsingør following the conclusion of his contract.[2] On 12 September, it was announced that Gary Hooper had departed the club following the conclusion of his contract.[3][4] On 14 September, the Phoenix announced the shock departure of captain Steven Taylor after mutually agreeing to terminate his contract.[5] Both players joined the Indian Super League, signing with Kerala Blasters[6] and Odisha,[7] respectively. On 24 September, Phoenix youngster Callan Elliot signed a deal with Xanthi.[8] On 18 October, it was reported that Matti Steinmann had signed with Indian club East Bengal despite no announcement from the Phoenix.[9] On 19 October, it was announced that Brandon Wilson would be parting ways with the Phoenix.[10] A week later, it was confirmed that Walter Scott would not extend his contract with the club, after he played as a trialist for Macarthur FC in a pre-season match.[11]

On 15 October, it was announced that the 2020–21 A-League season would commence on the 27th of December. On 27 October, the Phoenix confirmed that their squad will move to Australia for the start of the new campaign.[12][13] On 28 October 2020, the Phoenix announced the dual signings of All Whites Clayton Lewis and James McGarry on one-year deals. [14][15] On 30 October, it was announced Joshua Laws had signed a one-year deal with the Phoenix. [16] On 6 November, it was announced that Matthew Ridenton had returned to the Phoenix on a one-year deal. [17] On 10 November, the Phoenix announced the signing of Mirza Muratovic on a one-year deal. [18] On 30 November, the Phoenix announced the signing of Israeli International Tomer Hemed, as its marquee player on a one-year contract. [19]

Players

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  NZL Stefan Marinovic
2 DF  AUS Liam McGing
3 DF  AUS Luke DeVere
4 DF  NZL Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi
5 MF  NZL James McGarry
6 MF  NZL Tim Payne
7 FW  AUS Reno Piscopo
8 MF  AUS Cameron Devlin
9 FW  ENG David Ball
10 MF  MEX Ulises Dávila (captain)
11 MF  AUS Jaushua Sotirio
No. Pos. Nation Player
12 MF  NZL Matthew Ridenton
14 MF  NZL Alex Rufer (vice-captain)
15 MF  AUS Mirza Muratovic
16 DF  NZL Louis Fenton
17 FW  ISR Tomer Hemed
18 FW  NZL Ben Waine
19 MF  NZL Sam Sutton
20 GK  NZL Oliver Sail
21 MF  AUS Joshua Laws
23 MF  NZL Clayton Lewis

Transfers

From youth squad
N
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 Notes
19 MF Sam Sutton18 3-year senior contract[20]

Transfers in
No. Position Player Transferred from Type/fee Contract length Date Ref
23MF Clayton Lewis Auckland City Free transfer 1 year 28 October 2020 [21]
5DF James McGarry Unattached Free transfer 1 year 28 October 2020 [22]
21MF Joshua Laws Unattached Free transfer 1 year 30 October 2020 [23]
12MF Matthew Ridenton Unattached Free transfer 1 year 6 November 2020 [24]
15FW Mirza Muratovic Unattached Free transfer 1 year 10 November 2020 [25]
17FW Tomer Hemed Unattached Free transfer 1 year 30 November 2020 [26]

Transfers out
No. Position Player Transferred to Type/fee Date Ref
13DF Liberato Cacace Sint-Truidense $2,100,000[1] 27 August 2020 [27]
21FW Callum McCowatt Helsingør End of contract 6 September 2020 [2]
88FW Gary Hooper Kerala Blasters End of contract 12 September 2020 [3][4]
27DF Steven Taylor Odisha Mutual contract termination 14 September 2020 [5][7]
17DF Callan Elliot Xanthi End of contract 24 September 2020 [8]
5MF Matti Steinmann East Bengal End of contract 18 October 2020 [9]
12MF Brandon Wilson Perth Glory Mutual contract termination 19 October 2020 [10]
23DF Walter Scott Unattached End of contract 25 October 2020 [11]

Contract extensions
No.NamePositionDurationDateNotes
9 David BallStriker2 years27 October 2020[28]
4Te Atawhai Hudson-WihongiDefender2 years29 October 2020[29]
2 Liam McGingCentre-back1 year2 November 2020[30]
3 Luke DeVereCentre-back1 year6 November 2020[31]

Technical staff
Position Name
Head coach Ufuk Talay
Assistant coach Chris Greenacre
Assistant coach/Head analyst Giancarlo Italiano
Goalkeeping coach Paul Gothard
Head physiotherapist Ben Venn
Strength & conditioning coach Aidan Wivell

Friendlies
20 November 2020 Blacktown Spartans 1–8 Wellington Phoenix Sydney, Australia
21:00 NZST
  • ?  ?'
 Report
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
25 November 2020 APIA Leichhardt 1–5 Wellington Phoenix Sydney, Australia
  • ?  ?'
 Report
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
2 December 2020 Macarthur FC 1–0 Wellington Phoenix Sydney, Australia
13:00 NZDT
Report Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
6 December 2020 Central Coast Mariners 0–2 Wellington Phoenix Sydney, Australia
Report
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
12 December 2020 Western Sydney Wanderers 1–3 Wellington Phoenix Sydney, Australia
  • Pelekanos  80'
 Report
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
19 December 2020 Newcastle Jets 3–4 Wellington Phoenix Newcastle, Australia
 Report
Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
17 January 2021 Wollongong Wolves 4–0 Wellington Phoenix Wollongong, Australia
Report Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)

Competitions

  Win   Draw   Loss

Overall
Competition Started round Final
position / round		 First match Last match
A-League — TBC 29 December 2020 31 May 2021
A-League Finals TBC TBC

Overview
Competition Record
P W D L GF GA GD Win %
A-League 4 1 1 2 5 6 −1 025.00
Total 4 1 1 2 5 6 −1 025.00

Updated to match played future (December 2020)
Source: Competitions

A-League
Main article: 2020–21 A-League

League table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Central Coast Mariners 6 4 0 2 9 5 +4 12 Qualification to Finals Series, 2021 FFA Cup round of 32, and 2022 AFC Champions League group stage[lower-alpha 1]
2 Brisbane Roar 4 3 0 1 8 4 +4 9 Qualification to Finals Series and 2021 FFA Cup round of 32[lower-alpha 1]
3 Perth Glory 5 3 0 2 15 12 +3 9
4 Western Sydney Wanderers 5 2 2 1 5 4 +1 8
5 Sydney FC 4 2 1 1 6 4 +2 7
6 Adelaide United 6 2 1 3 8 10 −2 7
7 Macarthur FC 5 2 1 2 4 7 −3 7 Qualification to 2021 FFA Cup round of 32[lower-alpha 2]
8 Melbourne City 5 2 0 3 6 9 −3 6
9 Western United 4 1 2 1 6 6 0 5
10 Wellington Phoenix[lower-alpha 3] 4 1 1 2 5 6 −1 4
11 Melbourne Victory 4 1 1 2 3 5 −2 4
12 Newcastle Jets 6 1 1 4 6 9 −3 4
Updated to match(es) played on 5 February 2021. Source: A-League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Least red cards; 5) Least yellow cards; 6) Toss of a coin in an event of a tie of two clubs.
Notes:
  1. The top two teams enter the Finals series at the semi-finals, while the teams ranked third to sixth enter the Finals series at the elimination-finals.
  2. The top 8 teams qualify for the round of 32, while the bottom four teams participate in a playoff round.[32]
  3. Wellington Phoenix cannot qualify for Asian Football Confederation competitions as they are not recognised as an AFC club.

Results summary
OverallHomeAway
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsWDLGFGAGDWDLGFGAGD
4 1 1 2 5 6  −1 4 0 0 2 2 4  −2 1 1 0 3 2  +1

Result by round
Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829
GroundAHAAABBHHAHAHAHHAHHAAHHHAAHBA
ResultLD✖✖WL✖
Position699991212121210
Updated to match(es) played on 24 November 2020. Source: ultimatealeague.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

  Win   Draw   Loss

TBD 1 Brisbane Roar Postponed Wellington Phoenix Brisbane
19:00 AEDT Source Stadium: Dolphin Oval
2 January 2021 2 Wellington Phoenix 1–2 Sydney FC Wollongong
17:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: WIN Stadium
Attendance: 3,637
Referee: Alex King
9 January 2021 3 Macarthur FC 1–1 Wellington Phoenix Sydney
17:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Campbelltown Stadium
Attendance: 2,609
Referee: Stephen Lucas
TBD 4 Western United Postponed Wellington Phoenix Geelong
19:00 AEDT Source Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
TBD 8 Wellington Phoenix Postponed Melbourne City Wollongong
19:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
TBD 9 Wellington Phoenix Postponed Perth Glory Wollongong
19:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
24 January 2021 27 Wellington Phoenix 1–2 Newcastle Jets Wollongong
19:00 AEST Report Stadium: WIN Stadium
31 January 2021 10 Central Coast Mariners 1–2 Wellington Phoenix Gosford
16:00 AEST Report Stadium: Central Coast Stadium
TBD 11 Wellington Phoenix Postponed Melbourne Victory Wollongong
17:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
TBD 12 Adelaide United Postponed Wellington Phoenix Adelaide
18:30 ACDT Source Stadium: Coopers Stadium
8 February 2021 20 Sydney FC v Wellington Phoenix Sydney
19:10 AEST Source Stadium: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
14 February 2021 24 Wellington Phoenix v Central Coast Mariners Wollongong
16:05 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
17 February 2021 5 Melbourne Victory v Wellington Phoenix Melbourne
19:05 AEST Source Stadium: AAMI Park
21 February 2021 13 Wellington Phoenix v Western Sydney Wanderers Wollongong
18:10 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
28 February 2021 21 Newcastle Jets v Wellington Phoenix Newcastle
18:10 AEST Source Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
TBC 14 Melbourne City Postponed Wellington Phoenix Melbourne
18:00 AEST Source Stadium: AAMI Park
TBC 15 Wellington Phoenix Postponed Western United Wollongong
19:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
7 March 2021 16 Wellington Phoenix v Perth Glory Wollongong
16:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
15 March 2021 17 Western Sydney Wanderers v Wellington Phoenix Sydney
19:00 AEST Source Stadium: Bankwest Stadium
21 March 2021 18 Wellington Phoenix v Brisbane Roar Wollongong
16:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
28 March 2021 19 Wellington Phoenix v Macarthur FC Wollongong
16:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
17 April 2021 22 Wellington Phoenix v Western United Wollongong
17:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
25 April 2021 23 Wellington Phoenix v Adelaide United Wollongong
16:00 AEST Source Stadium: WIN Stadium
9 May 2021 25 Macarthur FC v Wellington Phoenix Campbelltown
16:00 AEST Source Stadium: Campbelltown Stadium
16 May 2021 26 Perth Glory v Wellington Phoenix Perth
18:00 AWST Source Stadium: HBF Park
31 May 2021 29 Western Sydney Wanderers v Wellington Phoenix Sydney
19:00 AEST Source Stadium: Bankwest Stadium

References
  1. "Football: Wellington Phoenix star Liberato Cacace officially signs with Belgian Pro League club Sint-Truiden". The New Zealand Herald. 29 August 2020.
  2. Rollo, Phillip (6 September 2020). "All Whites forward Callum McCowatt departs Wellington Phoenix for Europe". Stuff.co.nz.
  3. Radbourne, Lucas (12 September 2020). "More departures show A-League can no longer compete financially with India". FTBL.
  4. "Striker Gary Hooper departs Wellington Phoenix amid Indian Super League interest". Stuff.co.nz. 13 September 2020.
  5. "Captain Steven Taylor leaves Wellington Phoenix by mutual consent". Stuff.co.nz. 14 September 2020.
  6. George, Arun (5 October 2020). "ISL: Kerala Blasters replace Bart Ogbeche with Gary Hooper". The Times of India.
  7. Krishna, Ajay (14 September 2020). "Odisha FC Sign 34 Year Old English Defender Steven Taylor". IFTWC.
  8. Rollo, Phillip (24 September 2020). "Wellington Phoenix rising star Callan Elliot to join Greek club Xanthi FC". Stuff.co.nz.
  9. "Official: German A-League midfielder the latest Indian exit". FTBL. 19 October 2020.
  10. "Brandon Wilson Parts Ways With Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 19 October 2020.
  11. Rugari, Vince (25 October 2020). "Ring the bells: Macarthur FC take first step towards A-League debut". The Sydney Morning Herald. Milicic handed starts to [...] ex-Wellington Phoenix defender Walter Scott, who are trialling with the club...
  12. "Wellington Phoenix set to spend Christmas in Australia as A-League start date confirmed". Stuff.co.nz. 15 October 2020.
  13. "'There is no option': Wellington Phoenix to move to NSW for A-League season". Stuff.co.nz. 27 October 2020.
  14. "Clayton Lewis Signs with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 28 October 2020.
  15. "James McGarry Signs with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 28 October 2020.
  16. Hewett, William (30 October 2020). "Football: Wellington Phoenix sign Australian midfielder Joshua Laws". Newshub.
  17. "Matt Ridenton Returns To The Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 6 November 2020.
  18. "Mirza Muratovic Signs With Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 10 November 2020.
  19. "Wellington Phoenix Signs Tomer Hemed As Marquee Striker". Wellington Phoenix. 30 November 2020.
  20. "Sam Sutton Signs First Professional Contract with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 29 October 2020.
  21. "Clayton Lewis Signs with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 28 October 2020.
  22. "James McGarry Signs with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 28 October 2020.
  23. Hewett, William (30 October 2020). "Football: Wellington Phoenix sign Australian midfielder Joshua Laws". Newshub.
  24. "Matt Ridenton Returns To The Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 6 November 2020.
  25. "Mirza Muratovic Signs With Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 10 November 2020.
  26. "Wellington Phoenix Signs Tomer Hemed As Marquee Striker". Wellington Phoenix. 30 November 2020.
  27. Rollo, Phillip (27 August 2020). "Wellington Phoenix rising star Liberato Cacace joins Belgian club Sint-Truiden". Stuff.co.nz.
  28. "David Ball Signs Extension With Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 27 October 2020.
  29. "Hudson-Wihongi Re-Signs with Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 29 October 2020.
  30. "Liam McGing Re-Signs For The Upcoming Season". Wellington Phoenix. 2 November 2020.
  31. "Luke DeVere Re-Signs With Wellington Phoenix". Wellington Phoenix. 6 November 2020.
  32. "FFA Cup to introduce Hyundai A-League play-off process from 2020". Football Australia. 20 December 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
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