Just one week after losing 2-0 away to Persib in Bandung on matchday three, the Victory squandered a 1-0 lead at the 80-minute mark to fall to a second consecutive group stage defeat.
The pair of losses to Persib leave them in third place of Group E and fighting for a Round of 16 spot with two games to play, with an imposing and intimidating matchday six trip to Seoul potentially a must-win game.
In front of a crowd of 3,400 that was predominantly in favour of the Indonesian visitors, the Victory failed to create a big chance throughout the entire match, with none of their 12 shot attempts being recorded as on target.
At the conclusion of the match, tempers flared between captain Davidson and some ultras following the match, when Savarese ordered a deflated and dejected squad to walk over to an uncharacteristically sparse northern stand to thank the few fans who attended.
Davidson appeared to take umbrage with words spoken by one or more individuals and had to be held back by terrace marshalls when attempting to jump the fence to speak to the supporter.
Melbourne have now won just one of their last eight competitive matches under new manager Giovanni Savarese, with their only clean sheet in that time coming in a 3-0 home victory over Seoul.
They're ninth on the A-League standings following a winless start to the new season (D2, L1) and now need to prepare for a Sunday evening trip to face 'original rivals' Adelaide United, who are in continental action on Thursday night with a trip to Singapore to take on Bailey Wright's Lion City Sailors, who defeated them 1-0 at Hindmarsh last week.
Aaron Murphy has been with Flashscore since 2018 and, as the founding editor of the Australian newsdesk, has reported on-site at several major events in Melbourne including the Australian Open, State of Origin, A-League, NBL and international cricket. You can read his pieces here and contact him on X or LinkedIn.
