Adelaide United 2025/26 season preview: What can go right and what can go wrong?

A tumultuous off-season has seen Adelaide United's A-League Men program undergo significant changes. After years of relative stability in an otherwise unstable league, the spotlight will be on how the Reds adapt in 2025/26.

Adelaide United before their pre-season match against Melbourne Victory in Mildura. (Image: Pagonis Photography)

What do you need to know coming into this season?

While the A-League may suffer from the lack of mainstream attention, you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in the Adelaide United office who still believes in the old cliche that all publicity is good publicity.

A lacklustre second half of the season led to Carl Veart's unceremonious dismissal, which then triggered assistant coach Travis Dodd to go public with explosive claims of undermining by Technical Director Ernest Faber in the coach's final weeks. Head of Youth Football, Airton Andrioli, was promoted to the role of Head Coach. In his first senior coaching job in the league, he has his hands full piecing together a new squad while working on bringing back sorely needed positivity on and off the pitch in South Australia.

Which exits will hurt?

After finishing season 2024/25 as the league's joint top scorer, it was no surprise that Archie Goodwin garnered strong overseas interest. The striker eventually earned a move to MLS outfit Charlotte FC.

While most would have expected Panagiotis Kikianis to be the next cab off the rank, interest came for Adelaide's experienced midfielders. Zach Clough and Stefan Mauk both could not justify turning down offers from Malaysia's Selangor FC and Vietnam's Cong An Hanoi FC, respectively.

The retirements of Isaias and Javi Lopez, who both remain with the club in coaching roles, may have been expected. Still, Airton Andrioli will not have the benefit of plugging in their experience when holes appear as a quick fix, unlike in Veart's reign.

What additions need to make an impact?

Instability between the sticks last season meant that Adelaide United were on the lookout for an experienced shot-stopper. Ernest Faber's Dutch connections pulled through to secure Joshua Smits, who will start the season as the club's undisputed #1.

The exits of Clough and Mauk meant that additions in the midfield were also necessary. They came later in the transfer window in the form of Anselmo, a former teammate of Craig Goodwin in Saudi Arabia, and Juan Muniz. Reds fans will be hoping that the experienced duo settle well in the A-League and complement the club's crop of young midfielders.

Western United's forced hibernation also benefited the Reds, with Jake Najdovski joining the club to compete with Luka Jovanovic for the starting striker position.

Who's the star?

This question is probably the easiest one to answer. Every conversation about Adelaide United's fortunes for season 2025/26 starts and ends with Craig Goodwin. The club legend returned home after a second spell with Saudi Arabian club Al Wehda.

The Reds have always relied heavily on Goodwin, and this sentiment will only be amplified this season. With the club's exits being covered by a mix of young and experienced players who have not been tested in the A-League, Goodwin's quality will be called upon to steady the ship when things get shaky.

The last time Goodwin featured in the league, he was acknowledged as its best player, winning the Johnny Warren Medal. While Adelaide hopes for that form to re-emerge, with a spot in the 2026 World Cup as a lucrative carrot, the Reds will benefit from having a local legend, who had to make it as a professional footballer the hard way, mentoring the next generation of South Australian footballers.

Who's due to break out this season?

Amlani Tatu is well and truly raring to go for Adelaide United. You could argue that he could have received more minutes in the previous season. Still, he can make a real impact if utilised well in the upcoming campaign. The only thing that may stand in his way is the overwhelming amount of wingers the Reds possess.

At the other end of the pitch, after Bart Vriends and Panagiotis Kikianis, Adelaide have a list of young, untried defenders who will get minutes to stake their claim. Time will tell where the likes of Feyzo Kasumovic, Sotiri Phillis, Vinko Stanisic, and Malual Nicola fit when the first starter is unavailable. The opportunities will be there for anyone who can stake their claim to become a first-team regular.

Why can it go right?

It is no secret that the league is getting younger out of financial necessity. Adelaide United is one of the clubs that has an upper hand in that department.

While some clubs may only be starting their journeys of blooding young players now, Adelaide United have players like Ethan Alagich, Panagiotis Kikianis, Jonny Yull, and Luka Jovanovic, who have a couple of years of experience. These players can provide the edge in tight matches as fully-fledged A-League players with experience under their belts.

It is also important to remember that, despite the personnel changes, Airton Andrioli, who will lead this new Adelaide United era, is very familiar with the club, having spent multiple years coaching its NPL team as the Head of Youth Football. Having played a significant role in the development of many of his squad members, he ensures that for most, it is business as usual—a key point of stability when the default of Australian football seems to be the complete opposite.

You add a fit and firing Craig Goodwin to the mix, some quality and experience from the club's imports, and a hopeful improvement of the Reds' abysmal 2024/25 defensive record, and you could have a solid team if all the planets align.

Where can it go wrong?

Adelaide's 2023/24 collapse led the club's top brass at the time to adhere to the party line, attributing part of the failure to an age imbalance. Examining the Reds' list reveals an abundance of players under the age of 23, followed by a group of players over 30.

When it comes to the imports, those older players arrive on multi-year deals. Something that, as witnessed in the case of Ryan Tunnicliffe, can be a difficult weight to shake if they cannot deliver as expected.

The club lacks players in that "Goldilocks Zone" area of their career, which often coincides with an athlete's prime. If the squad assembled cannot deliver results for the Reds, the old age balance discussion may reappear.

Balance is also essential when it comes to positions. While the Reds are well-stocked in the middle of the park and on the wing, the centre of defence seems shaky if starters Vriends and Kikianis go down, with only untried defenders at an A-League level behind them.

The Reds will also rely on the young duo of Jovanovic and Najdovski for their starting striker role. If they cannot deliver, Adelaide will rely on wingers such as Austin Ayoubi and Ben Folami to play in that makeshift role, or potentially another youngster, Brody Burkitt, if he receives a scholarship contract as anticipated.

Finally, the elephant in the room that Andrioli needs to familiarise himself with, or face the weight of, is a backline that conceded 53 goals in 26 regular-season games in the 2024/25 season. Unless Adelaide stops engaging in weekly shootouts with their adversaries, the neutral fan will be happy. At the same time, the locals will continue getting squeamish every time the ball crosses their halfway line.

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Prediction

The Reds have all the makings to be part of "the pack." Not consistent enough to separate themselves as a top two side and not flawed enough to bottom out as a bottom two side.

They will join the majority of the competition chasing finals football, with the result being decided on how long Andrioli's men will take to shake off adversity when it inevitably comes knocking. If it is snuffed out quickly, finals football may be in the mix; let it drag out, and you risk falling behind that pack.

Can Goodwin's timely brilliance inspire a young group of players? Will the imports work out? Can the disastrous defending of recent seasons be upgraded to average?

Expect a mixed bag of answers to those questions. A significant help for the Reds will be the general instability of their league.

Adelaide United's season won't be defined by brilliance or disaster, but by how long it takes for calm to return after the chaos. Expect them to be in conversation for a top six finish until the last weeks of the season, with the final result depending on how quickly the team recovers from its stumbles.

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