Reigning A-League champions Melbourne Victory face a tough week ahead of them as the 2009/10 season begins to heat up. The Victory take on Adelaide United at Etihad Stadium tomorrow night before playing their Round 19 catch up fixture at the same venue against the Wellington Phoenix on Tuesday before travelling to the Gold Coast for a clash with league leaders Gold Coast United next Friday.

Victory coach Ernie Merrick admits it is a grueling week but said things had been eased by the fact that some key players are returning from injury including Matthew Kemp, Surat Sukha and Evan Berger.

"There's a few aiming for Tuesday night against Wellington and given we've got three games in seven days there will be a few boys back," Merrick said yesterday. "We're well-prepared for it and a lot of players are coming good at the right time.

"Getting closer to the finals I'm always a believer in experience over youth, so if there were any of our boys ready to make a comeback they would be under consideration. But we wouldn't risk them and given the way the boys are playing, I can't see changes (against Adelaide)."

Although three games in seven days is a lot by A-League standards, Merrick revealed that the players would much rather play competitive matches than train and said his squad is well-prepared for the week ahead.

"The boys look forward to playing more games, getting more points, getting straight into it, the hype of the crowd, and as coaches we drive that," Merrick added. "The boys are just jumping out of their skin. Training has been first-class and it's all about building momentum towards the end of the season."