Wellington Phoenix fall into familiar trap following defeat to Adelaide United

Ufuk Talay's Wellington Phoenix lost their fourth straight game in the Australian League as they endured a 4-0 rout at the hands of previously winless Adelaide United. The result plummets them to eleventh in the table, with the most negative goal difference in the league.

Reds dominant from start to finish

For the New Zealanders, nothing went right in this game and it took the home side just seven minutes to break the deadlock.

The Reds recycled a corner which Wellington failed to clear, with Craig Goodwin volleying a Ryan Kitto cross to George Blackwood who slammed it wide of the visitors' keeper Alexander Paulsen.

Adelaide were thoroughly dominant in the first half and Paulsen was forced to put up a performance of the season. Wellington, in many ways, were lucky to go into the break just 1-0 down.

However, a lack of intent became ever more visible from the visitors' side as Adelaide continued to dominate possession. The pressure prompted two major errors from Wellington.

Just ten minutes into the second half, United doubled their lead as Blackwood was brought down inside the area by Phoenix defender Tim Payne. Fifteen minutes later Bernardo Oliveira weaved his way into the box and this time James McGarry brought the winger down.

Adelaide added salt to Phoenix's wounds by whipping in a fourth one at the 80-minute mark.

Phoenix's shambolic defense

Within six games at the start of the season, Talay's men have conceded fourteen goals, six more than the Newcastle Jets. The Jets, in fact, are the other club to inflict a 4-0 hammering on Phoenix this season.

One of their biggest weaknesses in recent years has been their inability to get the best out of Tim Payne's centre-back partner. Joshua Laws is too young at this stage to compete against top Australian outfits. What drags them down more is the inconsistency of their two holding midfielders, especially Alex Rufer. Rufer had to be substituted against both Newcastle and Adelaide.

Lack of creativity stems from traditional set-up

One thing that inevitably separates Phoenix from the rest of the division is their lack of creativity. Their safety-first brand of football prevents them from creating chances in the attacking third and prevents them from dominating possession.

As was the case against Western Sydney Wanderers and Adelaide, once the Phoenix concede, the fight is literally over. Phoenix has a lot to improve if they want to avoid getting the wooden spoon this season.