Sydney FC

2015–16 season
Chairman	Scott Barlow
Manager	Graham Arnold
Stadium	Allianz Stadium,Sydney
A-League	7th
FFA Cup	Round of 16
AFC Champions League	Round of 16
Top goalscorer	League:Filip Hološko (10 goals) All:Filip Hološko (10 goals)
Highest home attendance	40,539 vsWestern Sydney Wanderers (24 October 2015)
Lowest home attendance	8,717 vsPerth Glory (11 April 2016)
Average home league attendance	16,071
Home colours Away colours
← 2014–15 2016–17 →

The2015–16Sydney FC season was the club's eleventh season since its establishment in 2004. The club participated in theA-League for the eleventh time, theFFA Cup for the second time, as well as theAFC Champions League for the third time.

Sydney FC began the pre-season with a 7–0 win overEarlwood Wanderers.^[1] The club then announced the annualMacarthur Rams pre-season clash.^[2] The match took place on 30 July 2015, with Sydney FC cruising to a comfortable 5–1 victory. For both games, Sydney FC fielded mainly youth players and trialist's, of which includedMatt Simon andAlex Mullen who would later go on to sign for the club.^[3] The club announced a third pre-season friendly against a team ofGold Coast Premier League All-stars for mid-August.^[4] However, this match would be ultimately be cancelled as the venue did not meet one of the criteria forFootball Federation Australia sanctioned friendlies.^[5]

Rumours throughout the end of the2014–15 A-League season that Sydney FC had signedNewcastle Jets andYoung Socceroo midfielder,Andrew Hoole were confirmed on 30 April 2015.^[6] Following the Grand Final loss toMelbourne Victory key members of the team were still weighing up their options for the season. Initially it was thought the services ofGolden Boot winner,Marc Janko would be secured^[7] but after he left for Europe the day after the grand final to plan his wedding, rumours circled that he would not return.^[8] This was confirmed a week later with the club citing the number of games Janko would miss throughout the season as the A-League does not stop duringFIFA breaks a factor in the decision.^[9] Janko expressed his displeasure of how things were handled through social media site,Twitter.^[9][10] Senegalese cousinsMickaël Tavares andJacques Faty were quick to re-sign with club, extending their contracts from injury replacement players to full contracts. The club confirmed the signings of Tavares for two years on 21 May 2015^[11] and one year for Faty on 27 May 2015.^[12][13] The club also announced a two-year deal for strikerShane Smeltz on the same day.^[13]

Sydney FC had many places to fill during the off-season, after announcing only eighteen retained players on 3 June 2015.^[14] DefenderZachary Anderson was reunited with mentorGraham Arnold, signing for the sky blues on 15 July 2015 for one year.^[15] This was quickly followed by the announcement of the highly anticipated foreign marquee and visa spots ofFilip Hološko^[16] andMiloš Ninković.^[17] This appeared to spell the end of the 2014–15 Sydney FC Player of the YearMiloš Dimitrijević's time with club. However, with the departure ofNikola Petković toWesterlo^[18] there still remained one visa spot available, and on 28 July 2015, Sydney FC announced that he had re-signed for a further two years.^[19] With two days remaining before the commencement of the2015 FFA Cup, Sydney FC announced the services of another former student of Arnold's (during his time with theCentral Coast Mariners), when the club signedMatt Simon.^[20] The club then lost the services of talentedSocceroos midfielderTerry Antonis when he was transferred to Greek powerhousePAOK on 19 August 2015.^[21] On 25 August 2015, Sydney FC became the first club to utilise the "Mature Age Rookie" concept, signingAlex Mullen on a one-year deal.^[22] The club also announced the signing of veteran Sydney FC glovemanIvan Necevski (who returned to club after a stint withNew South Wales Premier League outfitRockdale City Suns)^[23] alongside Sydney FC Youth captain,Jacob Tratt.^[24]

Sydney FC began the regular season at home againstMelbourne City. The visitors took an early lead in the 16th when debutantWade Dekker capitalised on a defensive error byJacques Faty. However, the Sky Blues bounced back in injury time of the first half after a clever ball fromBrandon O'Neill allowed skipperAlex Brosque to set up international marqueeFilip Hološko with the equaliser. Sydney FC created many chances in the second stanza but City goalkeeperThomas Sørensen produced world-class saves time and time again to ensure the match would end 1–1.^[25]

Sydney FC then travelled toHunter Stadium to faceNew South Wales rivals,Newcastle Jets. Newcastle had a goal disallowed in the first half for an offside infringement. With minutes remaining skipperAlex Brosque was denied by the woodwork, and the match looked destined for a draw. However, in the final minute of the game, Brosque came up with superb header from a corner kick. Sydney won the match 1–0. The win signified Sydney FC's unbeaten streak against Newcastle to eight games.^[26] The match also involved a sickening collision between Sydney FC strikerShane Smeltz and Newcastle Jets goalkeeperMark Birighitti which left the shotstopper requiring hospitalisation and major dental surgery.^[27]

The firstSydney Derby of the year was hosted by Sydney FC atAllianz Stadium. The attendance of 40,539 was the second largest on record for the fixture and everyone in the stadium witnessed another pulsating clash. For the second match in a row, Sydney FC's opponent had a goal disallowed for an offside infringement in the first half and also for the second match in a row, Sydney FC scored in the dying minutes to win 1–0. Serbian internationalMiloš Ninković latched onto a splendid through-ball from rookiecentral midfielderBrandon O'Neill to put the game to bed. Sydney FC extended its unbeaten derby streak to five matches.^[28]

Sydney FC travelled to Gosford, to playCentral Coast Mariners atCentral Coast Stadium, on 31 October.Shane Smeltz opened the scoring in the 34th minute after some clever work fromAlex Brosque, sweeping it home from close range. Mariners strikerRoy O'Donovan then equalised a minute later with an easy tap-in from close range. A few minutes later, O'Donovan was through on goal, and attempted to round Sydney keeperVedran Janjetovic before being taken down and going to ground. However, the referee did not award a penalty. Three minutes before the interval, Mariners midfielderNick Fitzgerald was sent off for a second yellow card, swinging the game in Sydney's favour. After a lengthy stalemate, Mariners all-time top goalscorer and newSydney FC signingMatt Simon scored after a marauding run fromFilip Hološko, who unselfishly laid the ball off to Simon. Six minutes later, Simon scored his second goal after a smart run fromMickaël Tavares, and thus, the game ended 3–1, to Sydney. Sydney remained on top of theA-League ladder as the only unbeaten team remaining in the competition.^[29]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  AUS Vedran Janjetović 2 DF  AUS Sebastian Ryall 4 DF  AUS Zachary Anderson 5 DF  AUS Matthew Jurman 6 FW  AUS Robert Stambolziev 7 MF  AUS Andrew Hoole 8 MF  SRB Miloš Dimitrijević 9 FW  NZL Shane Smeltz(vice-captain) 10 MF  SRB Miloš Ninković 11 MF  AUS Chris Naumoff 12 DF  AUS Jacob Tratt 13 MF  AUS Brandon O'Neill 14 FW  AUS Alex Brosque(captain)

No. Pos. Nation Player 16 DF  AUS Riley Woodcock 17 MF  AUS David Carney 18 FW  AUS Matt Simon 19 DF  SEN Jacques Faty(vice-captain) 20 GK  AUS Ivan Necevski 21 FW  SVK Filip Hološko 22 MF  IRQ Ali Abbas 23 MF  AUS Rhyan Grant 24 FW  AUS George Blackwood 25 DF  AUS Aaron Calver 27 MF  SEN Mickaël Tavares 29 MF  AUS Alex Mullen 30 GK  AUS Anthony Bouzanis

N	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Age	Notes
24	FW		George Blackwood	18
30	GK		Anthony Bouzanis	19
12	DF		Jacob Tratt	20	[30]

No.	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Age	Moving from	Type	Transfer window	Ends	Transfer fee	Source
7	MF		Andrew Hoole	21	Newcastle Jets	Transfer	Pre-season	2017	Free	[6]
13	MF		Brandon O'Neill	21	Free agent	Transfer	Pre-season	2017	Free	[31]
16	DF		Riley Woodcock	20	Perth Glory	Transfer	Pre-season	2016	Free	[32]
4	DF		Zachary Anderson	24	Central Coast Mariners	Transfer	Pre-season	2016	Free	[33]
10	MF		Miloš Ninković	30	Free agent	Transfer	Pre-season	2017	Free	[34]
21	FW		Filip Hološko	31	Free agent	Transfer	Pre-season	2017	Free	[35]
18	FW		Matt Simon	29	Central Coast Mariners	Transfer	Pre-season	2017	Free	[36]
29	MF		Alex Mullen	23	Mars Hill University	Transfer	Pre-season	2016	Free	[37]
20	GK		Ivan Necevski	35	Rockdale City Suns	Transfer	Pre-season	2016	Free	[38]
17	MF		David Carney	32	Free agent	Transfer	Round 18	2017	Free	[39]

No.	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Age	Moving to	Type	Transfer window	Transfer fee	Source
21	FW		Marc Janko	31		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[40]
1	GK		Ivan Necevski	35		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[41]
3	DF		Saša Ognenovski	36		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[42]
18	MF		Peter Triantis	23		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[42]
19	MF		Nick Carle	33		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[42]
7	FW		Corey Gameiro	22		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[42]
12	MF		Hagi Gligor	20		End of Contract	Pre-season	Free	[42]
11	FW		Bernie Ibini	22	Shanghai SIPG	End of Loan	Pre-season	Free	[42]
6	DF		Nikola Petković	29	Westerlo	Transfer	Pre-season	Undisclosed	[18]
17	MF		Terry Antonis	21	PAOK	Transfer	Pre-season	$500,000	[43]
3	DF		Alex Gersbach	18	Rosenborg	Transfer	Round 18	Undisclosed	[44]

Position	Name
Manager	Graham Arnold
Assistant Manager	Steve Corica
Youth Team Manager	Robbie Stanton
Goalkeeping Coach	John Crawley
Strength & Conditioning Coach	Andrew Clark
Physiotherapist	Stan Ivancic

N	Pos.	Nat.	Name	Total					A-League					FFA Cup					AFC Champions League
				Apps	Goals				Apps	Goals				Apps	Goals				Apps	Goals
1	GK		Vedran Janjetović	37	0	1	0	0	27+0	0	0	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	8+0	0	1	0	0
2	DF		Sebastian Ryall	30	0	7	0	0	23+0	0	5	0	0	2+0	0	1	0	0	5+0	0	1	0	0
4	DF		Zachary Anderson	9	0	0	0	1	4+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	5+0	0	0	0	1
5	DF		Matthew Jurman	34	0	4	0	0	25+0	0	3	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	7+0	0	1	0	0
6	FW		Robert Stambolziev	15	1	2	0	0	1+7	0	2	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	1+4	1	0	0	0
7	MF		Andrew Hoole	23	0	5	0	0	6+9	0	4	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	4+2	0	1	0	0
8	MF		Miloš Dimitrijević	33	1	5	0	0	18+7	0	5	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	7+1	1	0	0	0
9	FW		Shane Smeltz	30	5	3	0	0	12+10	4	2	0	0	2+0	1	0	0	0	3+3	0	1	0	0
10	MF		Miloš Ninković	33	5	5	0	0	23+2	4	5	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	5+2	1	0	0	0
11	MF		Chris Naumoff	18	1	0	0	0	8+2	0	0	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	4+2	1	0	0	0
12	DF		Jacob Tratt	0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
13	MF		Brandon O'Neill	30	1	6	0	0	16+5	0	4	0	0	2+0	0	1	0	0	6+1	1	1	0	0
14	FW		Alex Brosque	15	5	3	0	0	13+0	5	3	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0
16	DF		Riley Woodcock	6	0	0	0	0	1+0	0	0	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	3+0	0	0	0	0
17	MF		David Carney	13	3	5	0	0	7+1	2	3	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	5+0	1	2	0	0
18	FW		Matt Simon	27	3	10	0	0	9+11	3	6	0	0	0+2	0	1	0	0	5+0	0	3	0	0
19	DF		Jacques Faty	20	1	3	0	1	17+3	1	3	0	1	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
20	GK		Ivan Necevski	0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
21	FW		Filip Hološko	24	10	5	1	0	23+1	10	5	1	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
22	MF		Ali Abbas	13	2	2	0	0	2+7	2	2	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	3+1	0	0	0	0
23	MF		Rhyan Grant	33	2	6	0	0	24+0	0	5	0	0	2+0	1	0	0	0	7+0	1	1	0	0
24	FW		George Blackwood	20	1	1	0	0	8+6	1	1	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	4+2	0	0	0	0
25	DF		Aaron Calver	9	0	2	0	0	4+0	0	1	0	0	2+0	0	0	0	0	3+0	0	1	0	0
26	FW		Max Burgess	1	1	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+1	1	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
27	MF		Mickaël Tavares	26	1	4	0	0	17+5	1	4	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	3+0	0	0	0	0
29	MF		Alex Mullen	3	0	0	0	0	1+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+2	0	0	0	0
30	GK		Anthony Bouzanis	0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0
Players no longer at the club:
3	DF		Alex Gersbach	10	0	1	0	1	8+2	0	1	0	1	0+0	0	0	0	0	0+0	0	0	0	0

Earlwood Wanderers vSydney FC

22 July 2015Johnny Warren Community Challenge	Earlwood Wanderers	0–7	Sydney FC	Sydney,Australia
19:30AEST		Report	Smeltz 8',29' Calver 27' A. Mullen 38' Naumoff 60',66' Lokoli-Ngoy 64'	Stadium:Leichhardt Oval Attendance: 350 Referee: Chris Young

Macarthur Rams vSydney FC

30 July 2015Friendly	Macarthur Rams	1–5	Sydney FC	Sydney,Australia
19:30AEST	Kadric 78'	Report	Simon 7' Naumoff 23' Antonis 32' Burgess 51' Lokoli-Ngoy 66'	Stadium:Campbelltown Stadium

Gold Coast All-Stars vSydney FC

13 August 2015Gold Coast Cabs Challenge	Gold Coast All-Stars	Cancelled	Sydney FC	Gold Coast,Australia
19:00AEST		Source Cancellation		Stadium:Pizzey Park

Belconnen United vSydney FC

19 August 2015Friendly	Belconnen United	0–3	Sydney FC	Canberra,Australia
19:00AEST		Report	Simon 72' Tratt 85' Hoole 88'	Stadium:McKellar Park Attendance: 1,852 Referee:Ben Williams

South Coast Wolves vSydney FC

15 September 2015Friendly	South Coast Wolves	0–4	Sydney FC	Wollongong,Australia
19:00AEST		Report	Hoole 5' Smeltz 55',80' Hološko 82'	Stadium:WIN Stadium Referee: Adrian Arndt

Sydney FC vWellington Phoenix

18 September 2015Friendly	Sydney FC	1–3	Wellington Phoenix	Wollongong,Australia
19:45AEST	Hološko 67'	Report	Krishna 32' Powell 37',38'	Stadium:WIN Stadium Attendance: 2,874 Referee:Strebre Delovski

Sydney FC vAdelaide United

1 October 2015Friendly	Sydney FC	0–2	Adelaide United	Sydney,Australia
15:30AEST		Report	Djite 67',87'	Stadium:Leichhardt Oval

Sydney FC vMelbourne City

10 October 20151	Sydney FC	1–1	Melbourne City	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Hološko 45+3'	Report	Dekker 16'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 17,051 Referee:Ben Williams

Newcastle Jets vSydney FC

17 October 20152	Newcastle Jets	0–1	Sydney FC	Newcastle
17:15AEDT		Report	Brosque 89'	Stadium:Hunter Stadium Attendance: 12,173 Referee:Peter Green

Sydney FC vWestern Sydney Wanderers

24 October 20153	Sydney FC	1–0	Western Sydney Wanderers	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Ninković 88'	Report		Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 40,539 Referee:Ben Williams

Central Coast Mariners vSydney FC

31 October 20154	Central Coast Mariners	1–3	Sydney FC	Gosford
17:15AEDT	O'Donovan 35' Fitzgerald 40'  42'	Report	Smeltz 34' Simon 82',88'	Stadium:Central Coast Stadium Attendance: 10,030 Referee: Adam Fielding

Sydney FC vMelbourne Victory

14 November 20156	Sydney FC	2–4	Melbourne Victory	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Hološko 5' Brosque 20'	Report	Berisha 9',90+2' Finkler 28' Barbarouses 68'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 15,947 Referee:Chris Beath

Sydney FC vNewcastle Jets

4 December 20159	Sydney FC	1–0	Newcastle Jets	Sydney
19:40AEDT	Brosque 57'	Report		Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 9,155 Referee: Shaun Evans

Adelaide United vSydney FC

11 December 201510	Adelaide United	2–1	Sydney FC	Adelaide
19:10ACDT	Jeggo 62' Carrusca 90+4' (pen.)	Report	Gersbach 28' Hološko 70'	Stadium:Coopers Stadium Attendance: 9,076 Referee:Strebre Delovski

Wellington Phoenix vSydney FC

19 December 201511	Wellington Phoenix	1–1	Sydney FC	Wellington
19:15NZDT	Krishna 89' (pen.)	Report	Hološko 84'	Stadium:Westpac Stadium Attendance: 10,027 Referee:Peter Green

Sydney FC vCentral Coast Mariners

26 December 201512	Sydney FC	4–1	Central Coast Mariners	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Brosque 12',24' (pen.) Tavares 30' (pen.) McGing 84' (o.g.)	Report	Izzo 23'  27' Ascroft 38'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 12,648 Referee:Ben Williams

Melbourne City vSydney FC

2 January 201613	Melbourne City	2–2	Sydney FC	Melbourne
19:30AEDT	Hughes 37' Fornaroli 60'	Report	Ninković 53',78'	Stadium:AAMI Park Attendance: 10,140 Referee:Strebre Delovski

Sydney FC vNewcastle Jets

9 January 201614	Sydney FC	2–0	Newcastle Jets	Sydney
17:15AEDT	Hološko 15' Abbas 80'	Report		Stadium:ANZ Stadium Attendance: 15,127 Referee: Jonathan Barreiro

Western Sydney Wanderers vSydney FC

16 January 201615	Western Sydney Wanderers	1–2	Sydney FC	Parramatta
19:30AEDT	Vidošić 58'	Report	Faty 22' Smeltz 90'	Stadium:Pirtek Stadium Attendance: 19,627 Referee:Strebre Delovski

Melbourne Victory vSydney FC

26 January 201616	Melbourne Victory	1–0	Sydney FC	Melbourne
19:30AEDT	Jurman 79' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium:Etihad Stadium Attendance: 30,493 Referee:Strebre Delovski

Sydney FC vBrisbane Roar

30 January 201617	Sydney FC	1–3	Brisbane Roar	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Corona 52' (o.g.)	Report	Maclaren 8',76' McKay 67'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 12,548 Referee:Peter Green

Adelaide United vSydney FC

5 February 201618	Adelaide United	2–2	Sydney FC	Adelaide
19:10ACDT	Cirio 2',45'	Report	Simon 37' Hološko 45+2'	Stadium:Coopers Stadium Attendance: 11,785 Referee:Chris Beath

Sydney FC vPerth Glory

13 February 201619	Sydney FC	1–2	Perth Glory	Sydney
17:15AEDT	Smeltz 79'	Report	Keogh 23' Harold 65'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 11,559 Referee:Ben Williams

Sydney FC vWestern Sydney Wanderers

20 February 201620	Sydney FC	1–1	Western Sydney Wanderers	Sydney
19:30AEDT	Jamieson 36' (o.g.)	Report	Vidošić 13'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 40,382 Referee:Jarred Gillett

Melbourne Victory vSydney FC

27 February 201621	Melbourne Victory	1–1	Sydney FC	Melbourne
19:30AEDT	Barbarouses 46'	Report	Faty 64' Carney 76'	Stadium:AAMI Park Attendance: 20,112 Referee:Kris Griffiths-Jones

Melbourne City vSydney FC

5 March 201622	Melbourne City	3–0	Sydney FC	Melbourne
19:30AEDT	Fornaroli 41',71',82'	Report		Stadium:AAMI Park Attendance: 8,584 Referee:Jarred Gillett

Sydney FC vWellington Phoenix

12 March 201623	Sydney FC	1–3	Wellington Phoenix	Sydney
17:15AEDT	Hološko 51'	Report	Powell 12' Watson 13' Bonevacia 37'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 10,235 Referee: Takuto Okabe (Japan)

Central Coast Mariners vSydney FC

19 March 201624	Central Coast Mariners	2–2	Sydney FC	Gosford
17:15AEDT	O'Donovan 86' Ascroft 90+1'	Report	Blackwood 11' Smeltz 45'	Stadium:Central Coast Stadium Attendance: 6,383 Referee: Koichiro Fukushima (Japan)

Brisbane Roar vSydney FC

26 March 201625	Brisbane Roar	3–2	Sydney FC	Brisbane
18:30AEST	D. Petratos 32' Maclaren 36' Henrique 88'	Report	Hološko 24',87'	Stadium:Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 14,897 Referee: Shaun Evans

Sydney FC vAdelaide United

2 April 201626	Sydney FC	0–2	Adelaide United	Sydney
19:30AEDT		Report	Djite 26',45'	Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 8,981 Referee:Peter Green

Sydney FC vPerth Glory

10 April 201627	Sydney FC	4–0	Perth Glory	Sydney
17:00AEST	Carney 30' Hološko 36' 55'  78' Abbas 85' Ninković 90+1'	Report		Stadium:Allianz Stadium Attendance: 8,717 Referee:Ben Williams

Sorrento FC vSydney FC

5 August 2015Round of 32	Sorrento FC	0–2	Sydney FC	Perth,Australia
20:30AEST		Report	Smeltz 3' (pen.) Burgess 75'	Stadium:nib Stadium Attendance: 3,485 Referee: Adam Fielding

Adelaide United vSydney FC

26 August 2015Round of 16	Adelaide United	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Sydney FC	Adelaide,Australia
19:30AEST	Sánchez 40' McGowan 114', 116'	Report	Grant 16'	Stadium:Coopers Stadium Attendance: 5,066 Referee: Shaun Evans

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Sydney FC	6	3	1	2	4	4	0	10	Advance toknockout stage
2	Urawa Red Diamonds	6	2	3	1	6	4	+2	9
3	Guangzhou Evergrande	6	2	2	2	6	5	+1	8
4	Pohang Steelers	6	1	2	3	2	5	−3	5

Urawa Red Diamonds vSydney FC

24 February 20161	Urawa Red Diamonds	2–0	Sydney FC	Saitama,Japan
19:30JST	Muto 8' Koroki 65' (pen.)	Report		Stadium:Saitama Stadium Attendance: 19,500 Referee:Ali Sabah (Iraq)

Sydney FC vGuangzhou Evergrande Taobao

2 March 20162	Sydney FC	2–1	Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao	Sydney,Australia
20:00AEDT	Stambolziev 18' Dimitrijević 89'	Report	Calver 25' (o.g.)	Stadium:Sydney Football Stadium Attendance: 18,149 Referee:Alireza Faghani (Iran)

Pohang Steelers vSydney FC

16 March 20163	Pohang Steelers	0–1	Sydney FC	Pohang,South Korea
19:30KST		Report	Naumoff 41'	Stadium:Pohang Steel Yard Attendance: 4,247 Referee:Fahad Al-Mirdasi (Saudi Arabia)

Sydney FC vPohang Steelers

5 April 20164	Sydney FC	1–0	Pohang Steelers	Sydney,Australia
20:00AEST	Ninković 51'	Report		Stadium:Sydney Football Stadium Attendance: 5,642 Referee:Mohsen Torky (Iran)

Sydney FC vUrawa Red Diamonds

20 April 20165	Sydney FC	0–0	Urawa Red Diamonds	Sydney,Australia
20:00AEST		Report		Stadium:Sydney Football Stadium Attendance: 8,803 Referee:Muhammad Taqi (Singapore)

Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao vSydney FC

3 May 20166	Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao	1–0	Sydney FC	Guangzhou,China
18:30CST	Gao Lin 2'	Report		Stadium:Tianhe Stadium Attendance: 33,517 Referee:Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)

Shandong Luneng Taishan vSydney FC

18 May 2016First leg	Shandong Luneng Taishan	1–1	Sydney FC	Jinan,China
19:30CST	Tardelli 57'	Report	Carney 15'	Stadium:Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium Attendance: 16,917 Referee: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (Qatar)

Sydney FC vShandong Luneng Taishan

25 May 2016Second leg	Sydney FC	2–2 (3–3agg.)	Shandong Luneng Taishan	Sydney,Australia
20:00AEST	O'Neill 2' Grant 46' Anderson 76'	Report	Montillo 12' Hao 90'	Stadium:Sydney Football Stadium Attendance: 9,451 Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)

On 6 May, 2016, Sydney FC hosted their annual Sky Blue Ball and presented eight awards on the night.^[45]

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