Alessandro Del Piero ... the Italian superstar is hacked down by Mariners striker Daniel McBreen. Source: News Limited
Adelaide United is at risk of being punished by Alessandro Del Piero if they think kamikaze tackles will halt the superstar.
The Italian will front the Hindmarsh Stadium crowd for the first time on Monday night, buoyed by the fact Sydney FC knocked off top side Central Coast Mariners in a fierce 1-0 win on Thursday night at Allianz Stadium.
The Mariners fouled Del Piero eight times before Brett Emerton scored a late winner and the away side had Tom Rogic and John Hutchinson sent off for reckless challenges.
Former Adelaide skipper Ross Aloisi believes the Reds will suffer untold damage if they choose to foul Del Piero.
| P | W | D | L | GD | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Central Coast | 13 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 27 |
| 2 | Adelaide | 13 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 25 |
| 3 | Victory | 13 | 7 | 2 | 4 | -1 | 23 |
| 4 | Western Sydney | 13 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| 5 | Perth | 13 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 18 |
| 6 | Wellington | 13 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 16 |
| 7 | Newcastle | 13 | 5 | 1 | 7 | -8 | 16 |
| 8 | Brisbane | 13 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| 9 | Sydney | 13 | 4 | 1 | 8 | -11 | 13 |
| 10 | Heart | 13 | 3 | 3 | 7 | -4 | 12 |
"The way to stop him is to stop the supply to Del Piero," said Aloisi.
"That's the simple option because once he does get the ball, Adelaide could be in for a rough ride.
"When he gets the ball you can't afford to let him turn towards goal but that's another issue.
"He is that good at it, that he can shift players with a movement of his feet or a drop of the shoulder.
"I've seen a lot of players get sucked into that.
"He also has the ability to back into players and roll them any way he wants to, he can sense where they are.
"He's just so comfortable and it's good to see a player of his quality coming into the A-League and teaching something new."
Del Piero has drawn the highest A-League fouls average, 3.54 per game, and is the A-League's second most fouled player behind Brisbane Roar's Thomas Broich.
The German has been fouled 42 times in 13 matches, while Del Piero has been fouled 39 times in 11 games for Sydney.
In his 807 career matches, Del Piero's 38-year-old body has been battered by an average of more than three fouls per clash or about 2421 free kicks for his teams.
Aloisi said he was hoping Del Piero wouldn't be on the receiving end of rough play at Hindmarsh, believing A-League referees would be watchful of every move surrounding the Juventus legend.
But he declared Adelaide would mark Sydney's No. 10 for more than just special attention.
"There's no doubt about it he has been a target for other clubs," Aloisi said.
"But if clubs are serious about stopping him you have to do the damage before he gets the ball or it could be too late."
Adelaide club officials claim about 9000 tickets had been pre-sold for the end-of-year blockbuster.
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