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Melbourne City face a dangerous Sydney FC on Saturday as the history of last year's A-League Women's semi-final lingers.
Heat will be no obstacle for Sydney FC captain Madison Haley when her A-League Women's side takes on Melbourne City at Allianz Stadium.
"I'm from Texas so I'm pretty used to that, I honestly haven't found any of the days here that hot," the midfielder told reporters on Friday.
Hot conditions last week prompted debate about the start times of ALW games.
But milder 29 degree temperatures are forecast in Sydney on Saturday when the third-placed Sky Blues, on a three-game winning streak, meet second-placed City.
"I don't think very much separates us, to be honest, it's going to be a very entertaining match," Haley said.
Last week, Sydney FC put six goals past City's cross-city rivals Melbourne Victory, making for a nervous City coach Dario Vidosic.
"We know they're a threat," Vidosic said.
"There's a lot of quality in that team and they've been towards the top of the table."
In an epic semi-final last season, Sydney clawed back from 2-0 at halftime to defeat City 4-2 in the closing seconds of extra time, catapulting them into their fifth consecutive grand final, which they lost 2-1 to Melbourne Victory.
"There's a bit of history there for the girls that were here (in the 2022 semi-finals)," Vidosic said.
The game will be a double-header as Sydney FC's men take on the Central Coast Mariners after the women's game.
"Allianz is such a beautiful stadium and we get such great support there," Haley said.
"It's also exciting for the fans to get 180 minutes of soccer so I think it's a win-win for the team and fans as well."
Sydney FC forward Cortnee Vine is coming off selection for the Matildas in their Cup of Nations squad.
But star forward Princess Ibini missed out on selection despite a strong start to the season and a hat-trick against Melbourne Victory last weekend.
"I would probably put five or six girls in our team into the Matilda squad right now," Haley said.
"But I hope that all these girls will get a chance and we're obviously going to do everything we can as a club to keep pushing in the league and hopefully get more and more attention on them."
