Wellington Phoenix have been crushed 6-0 by defending champions Melbourne City in their A-League clash at Sydney on Saturday.
Entering the contest on a two-game win streak, the Phoenix were sent crashing back to earth, offering no answer for the rampant Melbourne offence.
The defeat is the Phoenix's heaviest under coach Ufuk Talay and the worst since 2016, when they also lost 6-0 to Melbourne City. It also equals their biggest losing margin of 7-1 against Sydney FC in 2013.
After heading into the interval trailing by just an own-goal off the head of Finn Surman, several defensive mistakes saw the floodgates opened, as their opponents struck five times in the second stanza to complete the rout.
Despite the demoralising nature of the defeat, the Phoenix are still well placed to make the finals, sitting just one point behind fifth-placed Adelaide United with three games in hand.
They'll move on to face Central Coast Mariners on Tuesday.
