Football: Barbarouses shines in big Melbourne win

Melbourne Victory's Kosta Barbarouses. Photo / Getty Images

Melbourne Victory have announced themselves as A-League title favourites with a 4-1 belting of Western Sydney Wanderers in a pulsating season opener.

In front of 30,083 fans at Etihad Stadium, Victory attacked from start to finish to inflict Western Sydney's all-time worst defeat.

New boys Matthieu Delpierre and Besart Berisha had Victory 2-0 up after 18 minutes, before the twinkle-toes of Kiwi Kosta Barbarouses earned a third.

The New Zealand international danced past three Wanderers defenders before his blocked shot set up acting captain Leigh Broxham to blast home for 3-0.

Mark Bridge reduced the deficit before halftime but there was no denying Victory, with Berisha turning provider to thread Archie Thompson through for 4-1.

Kevin Muscat's side were irrepressible, with spritely one-touch passing and quick movement consistently challenging the Wanderers defence.

There were no poor performances but Barbarouses and Gui Finkler particularly impressed, the latter's set ball efforts especially potent.

Victory's performance made a mockery of Western Sydney's Asian Champions League (ACL) form.

A miserly defence helped the Wanderers progress to the final of the continental competition but without internationals Nikolai Topor-Stanley and Matthew Spiranovic, they crumbled.

After five ACL games with just one goal conceded, Western Sydney faced a 3-0 deficit with less than half an hour on the clock.

While Western Sydney would rue referee Jarred Gillett's decision not to give a penalty - and potentially a red card - for a rash Delpierre tackle on eight minutes and just after he opened the scoring, it would not have held Victory back for long.

Ten minutes later Gillett adjudged Antony Golec to have handballed when Finkler's shot struck it on the way to goal.

The penalty brought Berisha to the spot, who sent Ante Covic the wrong way, before slapping his hand on the Victory crest to celebrate his first goal in a navy blue shirt.

After Broxham made it three, Western Sydney's reply came after 41 minutes, when Bridge seized on Victory indecision in the box to blast past Nathan Coe.

But Thompson restored a three-goal gap nine minutes after the break in the manner of so many of his goals for Victory - slotting inside the post from a one-on-one chance.

Victory's attacking efforts didn't cease with Thompson's goal but their scoring run did - Broxham unlucky not to add to his tally from a neat Finkler set piece in the last two minutes.

-AAP