City coach calls on team to show spirit

Melbourne City coach John van 't Schip says the winner of the cross-town clash with Victory will come down to which team wants it more.

Locked on 28 points in third and fourth on the A-League ladder and sharing a win apiece this season, van 't Schip says the teams know each other backwards.

"We take away things (from previous games); we know their strengths and weaknesses and they know ours but it's who really wants it tomorrow - I think that's the main thing," van 't Schip said.

The Dutch coach said his team lacked spirit in last round's 2-1 loss to Newcastle, which they would need to match a fired-up Victory at AAMI Park on Saturday night.

"That's where we lacked compared to a few weeks against Western Sydney at home.

"We have to get stronger in that aspect to become that fighting team."

One card that City have up their sleeve is this week's recruitment of Socceroo centre-back Alex Wilkinson.

The 31-year-old is set to be thrown straight into the derby cauldron with van 't Schip not concerned he hasn't played since December.

He said Wilkinson would be drafted straight into to help shore up their defence, with his role to be decided on game day.

"He's shown a good physical appearance, he's kept on training," van 't Schip said.

"I think the break was also good for him because he's been playing for a long time.

"He made a good impression this week so he's going to be in the squad."

Van 't Schip said he felt like City were in the midst of a "second building phase" as they integrated new signings like Wilkinson, Anthony Caceres and Osama Malik.

While he conceded they had lost momentum he felt it would have long term benefits.

"I think now we're building towards the end of season and getting the team functioning stronger physically and also the way we play.

"I'm happy with the players who have come in and the possibilities that we have but it's again showing we can deliver."