2025–26 Melbourne City FC season

Melbourne City
2025–26 season
OwnerCity Football Group
ChairmanKhaldoon Al Mubarak
ManagerAurelio Vidmar
StadiumAAMI Park
A-League MenTBD
A-League Men finals seriesTBD
Australia CupRound of 32
Biggest defeat0–2
vs. APIA Leichhardt (A)
(30 July 2025)
Australia Cup
All statistics correct as of 30 July 2025.

The 2025–26 season is Melbourne City Football Club's 15th season in the A-League Men; 11th since the club was taken over by the City Football Group. In addition to the domestic league, Melbourne City participated in this season's edition of the Australia Cup.

Review and events

Background

Melbourne City's 2024–25 season saw them finish 2nd in the A-League Men regular season qualifying for the AFC Champions League Elite and won the Grand Final 1–0 against Melbourne Victory for their second A-League Men championship.

Pre-season

On 6 June, Steven Ugarkovic departed City following the end of his two-year contract[1] whilst Alessandro Lopane signed on for three seasons.[2] The day after, Samuel Souprayen signed on for one season.[3] Youth players Arion Sulemani and Harry Politidis departed following the conclusion of their contracts on 12 June.[4] The day after, Max Caputo also signed a three-year contract extension[5] whilst Callum Talbot departed following the conclusion of his contract.[6] A week later, Harry Shillington signed a one-year contract extension.[7]

City's Australia Cup Round of 32 opponents were confirmed on 26 June, to verse NPL NSW side APIA Leichhardt away[8] in which it was confirmed to be played on 30 July at Leichhardt Oval; exactly one month until then.[9] Two days later, Jimmy Jeggo announced his retirement from professional football.[10] On 7 July, goalkeeper Patrick Beach also signed a three-year contract extension.[11]

On 11 July, City's first new signing was Australian defender Liam Bonetig from Scottish side Celtic B on a three-year deal.[12] A week later, City officially returned to training in preprations for the upcoming season.[13] On 21 July, Marco Tilio's loan at City ended and returned to Celtic.[14] Two days later, academy product Beckham Baker signed on a three-year deal for his first professional contract at City.[15]

July/August

City's season began with their Australia Cup clash against APIA Leichhardt on 30 July; played by a relatively youthful side of an average age of 17.6 in which City lost 2–0 and exited the cup at the Round of 32.[16][17] On 5 August, City signed Japanese attacker Takeshi Kanamori from J1 League side Avispa Fukuoka on a two-year deal.[18]

Players

[19] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Australia AUS Patrick Beach
4 DF Australia AUS Liam Bonetig
7 FW Australia AUS Mathew Leckie
10 FW Israel ISR Yonatan Cohen
13 DF Australia AUS Nathaniel Atkinson
15 FW Australia AUS Andrew Nabbout
16 DF Australia AUS Aziz Behich (captain)
17 FW Australia AUS Max Caputo
18 GK Australia AUS Dakota Ochsenham (injury replacement)
19 MF Australia AUS Zane Schreiber
21 MF Australia AUS Alessandro Lopane
22 DF Argentina ARG Germán Ferreyra
26 DF France FRA Samuel Souprayen
27 DF Australia AUS Kai Trewin
No. Pos. Nation Player
30 MF Austria AUT Andreas Kuen
34 DF Australia AUS Jayden Necovski (scholarship)
35 FW Australia AUS Medin Memeti
36 DF Australia AUS Harry Shillington
37 DF Australia AUS Peter Antoniou (scholarship)
38 MF Timor-Leste TLS Beckham Baker
39 MF Australia AUS Emin Durakovic
40 GK Australia AUS James Nieuwenhuizen
41 MF Australia AUS Lawrence Wong (scholarship)
46 FW Australia AUS Benjamin Mazzeo
47 MF Australia AUS Kavian Rahmani
60 GK Australia AUS Lachlan Charles
— FW Japan JPN Takeshi Kanamori

Transfers and contracts

Transfers in

No. Position Player Transferred from Type/fee Contract length Date Ref.
4 DF Liam Bonetig Scotland Celtic B Free transfer 3 years 11 July 2025 [12]
FW Japan Takeshi Kanamori Japan Avispa Fukuoka Free transfer 2 years 5 August 2025 [18]

From youth squad

No. Position Player Age Date Notes Ref.
47 MF Kavian Rahmani 18 1 July 2025 3 year contract[note 1] [20]
60 GK Lachlan Charles 18 1 July 2025 3 year contract[note 1] [21]
38 MF Timor-Leste Beckham Baker 16 23 July 2025 3 year contract[note 1] [15]

Transfers out

No. Position Player Transferred to Type/fee Date Ref.
6 MF Steven Ugarkovic Western Sydney Wanderers End of contract 30 June 2025 [1][22]
10 MF Israel Yonatan Cohen Unattached End of contract 30 June 2025 [23]
20 FW Arion Sulemani Perth Glory Mutual contract termination 30 June 2025 [4][24]
38 DF Harry Politidis Macarthur FC End of contract 30 June 2025 [4]
2 DF Callum Talbot Macarthur FC End of contract 30 June 2025 [6]
23 MF Marco Tilio Scotland Celtic End of loan 30 June 2025 [14]
8 MF James Jeggo Retired 3 July 2025 [10]

Contract extensions

No. Player Position Duration Date Notes
21 Alessandro Lopane MF 3 years 6 June 2025 [2]
26 France Samuel Souprayen DF 1 year 7 June 2025 [3]
17 Max Caputo FW 3 years 13 June 2025 New 3-year contract replacing previous contract.[5]
36 Harry Shillington DF 1 year 20 June 2025 [7]
1 Patrick Beach GK 3 years 7 July 2025 New 3-year contract replacing previous contract.[11]

Competitions

Overall record

Competition First match Last match Starting round Final position Record
Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
A-League Men 19 October 2024 3 May 2025 Matchday 1 2nd 0 0 0 0 0 0 +0 !—
Australia Cup 30 July 2025 Round of 32 Round of 32 1 0 0 1 0 2 −2 000.00
Total 1 0 0 1 0 2 −2 000.00

Last updated: 30 July 2025
Source: Soccerway

A-League Men

Main article: 2025–26 A-League Men

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
4 Central Coast Mariners 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Qualification for Finals series[a]
5 Macarthur FC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 Melbourne City 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7 Melbourne Victory 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8 Newcastle Jets 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 17 October 2025. Source: A-Leagues
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) goals scored; 4) wins; 5) head-to-head results; 5a) head-to-head points; 5b) head-to-head goal difference; 6) Fair Play points; 7) away goal difference; 8) away goals per match; 9) home goal difference; 10) home goals per match; 11) 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.

Results summary

Overall Home Away
Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts W D L GF GA GD W D L GF GA GD
0 0 0 0 0 0  0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0 0 0 0 0 0  0

Last updated: 30 July 2025.
Source: Ultimate A-League

Australia Cup

Main article: 2025 Australia Cup
30 July 2025 Round of 32 APIA Leichhardt 2–0 Melbourne City Sydney
19:30 AEST
  • Kambayashi 27'
  • Stewart 79'
 Report Stadium: Leichhardt Oval
Attendance: 2,793
Referee: Nathan Shakespear

AFC Champions League Elite

League stage

Main article: 2025–26 AFC Champions League Elite league stage

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Thailand Buriram United 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to round of 16
2 China Chengdu Rongcheng 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 South Korea FC Seoul 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 South Korea Gangwon FC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5 Malaysia Johor Darul Ta'zim 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 Japan Machida Zelvia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7 Australia Melbourne City 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8 Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
9 China Shanghai Port 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
10 China Shanghai Shenhua 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
11 South Korea Ulsan HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
12 Japan Vissel Kobe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 16 September 2025. Source: Asian Football Confederation
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of matches won; 5) penalty shoot-out if only two teams remain tied and played each other on the final matchday 6) fair play ranking; 7) drawing of lots
16 September 2025 (2025-09-16) 1 Melbourne City Australia v Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima Melbourne, Australia
17:45 AEST Source Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
1 October 2025 (2025-10-01) 2 Vissel Kobe Japan v Australia Melbourne City Kobe, Japan
19:00 UTC+9 Source Stadium: Kobe City Misaki Park Stadium
21 October 2025 (2025-10-21) 3 Melbourne City Australia v Thailand Buriram United Melbourne, Australia
18:45 AEDT Source Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
4 November 2025 (2025-11-04) 4 Machida Zelvia Japan v Australia Melbourne City Machida, Japan
19:00 UTC+9 Source Stadium: Nozuta Park Stadium
25 November 2025 (2025-11-25) 5 Melbourne City Australia v Malaysia Johor Darul Ta'zim Melbourne, Australia
18:45 AEDT Source Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
10 December 2025 (2025-12-10) 6 FC Seoul South Korea v Australia Melbourne City Seoul, South Korea
19:00 UTC+9 Source Stadium: Seoul World Cup Stadium
11 February 2026 (2026-02-11) 7 Ulsan HD South Korea v Australia Melbourne City Ulsan, South Korea
19:00 UTC+9 Source Stadium: Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium
18 February 2026 (2026-02-18) 8 Melbourne City Australia v South Korea Gangwon FC Melbourne, Australia
21:00 AEDT Source Stadium: Melbourne Rectangular Stadium

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Includes all competitions. Players with no appearances not included in the list.

As of 30 July 2025
No. Pos Nat Player Total A-League Men Australia Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Goalkeepers
60 GK Australia AUS Lachlan Charles 1 0 0 0 1 0
Defenders
36 DF Australia AUS Harry Shillington 1 0 0 0 1 0
37 DF Australia AUS Peter Antoniou 1 0 0 0 0+1 0
43 DF Australia AUS Marcus Humbert 1 0 0 0 1 0
45 DF Argentina ARG Ryan Kalms 1 0 0 0 1 0
48 DF Indonesia IDN Mathew Baker 1 0 0 0 1 0
Midfielders
19 MF Australia AUS Zane Schreiber 1 0 0 0 1 0
21 MF Australia AUS Alessandro Lopane 1 0 0 0 1 0
38 MF Timor-Leste TLS Beckham Baker 1 0 0 0 1 0
42 MF Australia AUS Benjamin Dunbar 1 0 0 0 0+1 0
44 MF Australia AUS Xavier Stella 1 0 0 0 0+1 0
47 MF Australia AUS Kavian Rahmani 1 0 0 0 1 0
53 MF Australia AUS Angus Mackintosh 1 0 0 0 1 0
Forwards
17 FW Australia AUS Max Caputo 1 0 0 0 1 0
46 MF Australia AUS Akeem Gerald 1 0 0 0 0+1 0
54 MF Australia AUS Aaron Cartwright 1 0 0 0 0+1 0

Disciplinary record

Includes all competitions. The list is sorted by squad number when total cards are equal. Players with no cards not included in the list.

As of 30 July 2025
No. Pos Nat Player Total A-League Men Australia Cup
Yellow card Second yellow card Red card Yellow card Second yellow card Red card Yellow card Second yellow card Red card
48 DF Indonesia IDN Mathew Baker 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0

Clean sheets

Includes all competitions. The list is sorted by squad number when total clean sheets are equal. Numbers in parentheses represent games where both goalkeepers participated and both kept a clean sheet; the number in parentheses is awarded to the goalkeeper who was substituted on, whilst a full clean sheet is awarded to the goalkeeper who was on the field at the start and end of play. Goalkeepers with no clean sheets not included in the list.

As of 30 July 2025
Rank No. Nat. Goalkeeper A-League Men Australia Cup Total
Total 0 0 0

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Option for two additional years.

References

  1. ^ a b "Steven Ugarkovic departs Melbourne City FC as a Champion". Melbourne City. 6 June 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Young gun signs three-year extension with City". Melbourne City. 6 June 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Souprayen signs on for third season at City". Melbourne City. 7 June 2025.
  4. ^ a b c "Duo departs following Championship win". Melbourne City. 12 June 2025.
  5. ^ a b "Golden Boot winner signs long-term extension". Melbourne City. 13 June 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Championship-winner departs after three seasons at City". Melbourne City. 13 June 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Young defender re-signs for 2025/26". Melbourne City. 20 June 2025.
  8. ^ "AUSTRALIA CUP: Round of 32 opponents locked in". Melbourne City. 26 June 2025.
  9. ^ "LOCKED IN: Australia Cup campaign to begin in late July". Melbourne City. 1 July 2025.
  10. ^ a b "Jimmy Jeggo announces retirement from professional football". Melbourne City. 3 July 2025.
  11. ^ a b "Championship-winning shot-stopper signs long-term extension". Melbourne City. 7 July 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Australian Youth International trades Celtic hoops for City blue". Melbourne City. 11 July 2025.
  13. ^ "VIDMAR: There's a new focus as City sets its sights on tough season ahead". Melbourne City. 18 June 2025.
  14. ^ a b "Dual Championship-winner returns to Europe". Melbourne City. 21 July 2025.
  15. ^ a b "BECKHAM GOES PRO: City Academy talent signs long-term deal". Melbourne City. 23 July 2025.
  16. ^ "AUS CUP REPORT: APIA Leichhardt 2-0 City". Melbourne City. 30 July 2025.
  17. ^ "City's bright future on show despite Australia Cup exit". Melbourne City. 30 July 2025.
  18. ^ a b "AFC Champions League winner joins City". Melbourne City. 5 August 2025.
  19. ^ "Squads: Men". Melbourne City FC. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  20. ^ "ACADEMY TO FIRST TEAM: Kavian Rahmani joins growing list of City Academy graduates". Melbourne City. 23 October 2024.
  21. ^ "Young goalkeeper becomes City's latest Academy graduate". Melbourne City. 30 October 2024.
  22. ^ "A-Leagues Champion Ugarkovic returns to Western Sydney". Western Sydney Wanderers. 20 June 2025.
  23. ^ Tuchman, Yaniv (17 June 2025). "אחרי שסיים את דרכו באוסטרליה: יונתן כהן מכוון ליעד חדש ומסקרן" [After finishing his journey in Australia: Yonatan Cohen is aiming for a new and intriguing destination]. Maariv.
  24. ^ Morgan, Gareth (13 July 2025). "Glory snap up young gun Sulemani". Perth Glory.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.