Janjetovic keen for derby clean sheet

Sydney FC goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic led the A-League for clean sheets last season with nine, but none of them came in the three Sydney derbies.

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This, despite the fact Western Sydney Wanderers had to battle a horror schedule and only narrowly avoided finishing at the bottom of the table.

It is an indication of the glorious uncertainty of derby games, in which form and a meticulous preparation can come to mean nothing and the result is often determined by which team wants to scrap harder in a dog-fight, or has better aim in a goal-fest.

Last season, there were 14 goals scored in the three derbies, which went 3-2 to Sydney at Allianz Stadium, 1-1 at Pirtek Stadium and 4-3 to Sydney, again at Pirtek. 

"We can go through our patterns of play, we can go through all of the video analysis during the week, but once we get to the game, sometimes, like  we've all seen in the past, the game plan goes out the window," Janjetovic said.

"In some situations you just have to fight to survive, fight to get the points. It doesn't matter how ugly the game is in the end, as long as you end up with the points. That's the main thing.

"Derbies have got their own rules once both teams are on the pitch and the whistle blows. The team that wins that first-ball contest, second-ball contest, goes into those 50-50s harder, I think that's the team that's going to come up with the three points.

"It was a bit of a goal-fest last season. It could be the same this season, it's hard to predict. They've got a point to prove and we'd like to have the bragging rights as well, so we've both got something to play for. It's not just about the three points."

Janjetovic and the-then Wanderers goalkeeper, Ante Covic, each recorded an own goal in last year's series. Janjetovic's came in the first game and Covic's in the third. 

Wanderers had won the AFC Asian Champions League title before the first of last season's derbies was played, but it struggled from the start in the domestic season and once deferred games started piling up on it the challenge of getting back into the race became too difficult.

Janjetovic believes Wanderers will feel as if they have a point to prove, especially since Sydney FC is now unbeaten in four straight derby games, the longest stretch without defeat for either team in these clashes.

"We've got a fair amount of new players and they've cleaned out pretty much a whole squad, so I wouldn't be expecting anything less than a hard-fought match and for them to come at us and throw everything they've got at us, including the kitchen sink," Janjetovic said.

"They've still got to gel together, but that could come down to one game and we've got to do everything we can on our part to make sure this isn't the game when they turn it on, because they've got players who are more than capable of doing that when the time is right for them."

Sydney has opened the season with a home draw and away win and Wanderers with a home loss and away draw, but Janjetovic said Sydney is still feeling its way and that a big game like this, in front of a full house, could put his team into gear if it got the win.

"It's one of those games we all look forward to during the year," he said.

"We know it's going to be a sell-out and there's a lot of hype, a lot of atmosphere.

"It's still early doors at this stage, but playing a big game like this means a lot. It pumps you up and if you get a win over your rivals and stay on the horse and keep getting those wins in the weeks after that, it's going to propel you up the ladder."