Why you should watch it
Because there is an enormous amount riding on the result.
Glory is three points clear of Victory, but Victory has a game in hand on it. If Victory wins it will take the lead, because its goal difference is superior to that of Glory. If Glory wins, it will be six points ahead of Victory and that game in hand won't seem to matter so much.
After what happened to it against Wellington Phoenix last weekend, Victory would be pumped up to the maximum no matter which team it was playing this week.
Victory created a heap of chances in the first half against Phoenix, including a penalty, but missed the vast majority of them and despite leading 1-0 and 2-1 it was never quite able to get comfortable and ended up losing 3-2.
Glory has been able to hang on to the competition lead despite not winning any of its last six games. It has had four draws and two losses in that time and last week's 2-2 draw with Brisbane Roar was typical of its up-and-down performances of late. Glory led 1-0 and trailed 2-1 in that match.
Surely this is the game that will draw a 90-minute performance from Glory. It is unbeaten against Victory this season, winning once and drawing once in the A-League and beating it in an FFA Cup quarter-final, so it is entitled to go in with a lot of belief.
What happened last time they played
Victory looked certain to win when it led 3-1 well into the second half at nib Stadium in round 15, but then Glory produced a stunning revival and goals from Rostyn Griffiths and Jamie Maclaren in the 79th and 89th minutes respectively gave it a 3-3 draw.
Glory striker Andy Keogh scored Glory's first goal - from the penalty spot. He hasn't scored in four games since and he has gone six games without scoring from regular play, but he has a great record against Victory.
The Irishman has scored four goals in three games against it - two in the A-League and two in the FFA Cup game.
Key battles
Besart Berisha will be stinging for a goal here. He missed a penalty in the first half against Wellington last week and wasn't able to score at any other stage of the game either.
Glory central defenders Michael Thwaite and Dino Djulbic will presumably both spend time picking him up, depending on which angle he comes from. Berisha only needs half a sight of goal to score.
Each team will have a silky-skilled playmaker on deck - Gui Finkler for Victory and Nebo Marinkovic for Glory.
They won't be chasing each other around the park, but they do have the potential to have a big influence on the result because of their proficiency when it comes to defence-splitting passes and accuracy from dead-ball situations.
Why Victory will win
You wouldn't think Victory would have two weeks in a row where it butchers a game by bombing a heap of chances. Berisha, Kosta Barbarouses and Fahid Ben Khalfallah are all massive threats here.
Victory will be keen to prove a point against Glory as well, having not beaten it so far this season.
Vastly experienced central defender Matthieu Delpierre is set to start this game for Victory after returning from a long-term foot injury off the bench last week and his presence will make a big difference to an otherwise young defence.
Why Glory will win
It does a very good job of counter-attacking against Victory. If Victory pours forward in numbers but loses the ball, Glory has proven itself at least as good as any side and better than most at taking advantage of the space Victory leaves behind by quickly moving the ball forward through it.
Glory is resilient, and teams like that, which are prepared to be patient and wait for their chance to do something, seem to be able to frustrate Victory.
Patient should be Marinkovic's middle name. He may have little impact for 60 minutes but then see a chance to put someone through and he pulls it off brilliantly.
What the players are saying
Victory midfielder Carl Valeri says he's going to take his anger at losing the way the team did against Phoenix and make it work for him.
"It should make us angry. I know I'm angry," he said. "I'm going to take that anger into the game on Saturday. I'm not saying I'm going to kick them, but I'm going to take what it felt like to lose against Wellington and I'm sure the other boys will, too."
Glory goalkeeper Danny Vukovic will equal Matt Thompson's record of 221 A-League appearances in this game and says he is proud of being a part of the A-League's rise.
"It feels like only yesterday when I played my first game in the A-League," Vukovic said. "It’s gone that quick, but I’m really proud of the way the game has come in the last 10 years and to have been part of the league in that time and to see how far it’s come, it’s been amazing."
What the coaches are saying
Victory's Kevin Muscat is looking for the substance to accompany the style.
"We don't want to go out there, put on a performance and not beat teams," Muscat said. "We want to put on a good performance, no doubt, but we want to beat everyone."
Perth coach Kenny Lowe says Keogh's confidence has not been rocked by his barren run in front of goal and that even if he wasn't scoring he was still making things happen.
"He's contributing," Lowe said. "He's a pro. There's more to his game than just goals. He contributes in so many ways. He's happy. I chat to him - he's in a good spot."
The Villain
Keogh has got to end his goal-scoring drought - simple as that.
The most important players in a team is the striker, because he scores the goals, and the goalkeeper, because he stops them. Any advantage in quality you can get from the players you have in those positions is potentially enormous.
Look at the role Sydney FC is on at the moment. Its main striker - Mark Janko - has scored eight goals in six games.
The Hero
Barbarouses has scored a goal in each of Victory's last four games, including a couple of stunners. His confidence would be soaring because of that and he'll take the field against Glory believing he is going to score again.
The All Whites representative is one of the hardest players to defend against in the competition. His close control is outstanding and combined with his speed he makes it a nerve-wracking experience for the left-back who has to defend against him.
He is bound to create havoc at some stage of this game.
The match in numbers
There is little between the two teams in overall clashes. Out of the 30 meetings, Victory has won 12 times and Glory 11, with seven draws.
But in Melbourne the picture changes dramatically. Victory has won eight of the 15 games and Glory three, with four drawn.
Victory is clearly the highest-scoring team in the competition, despite the fact it has played one game less than the next four teams on that list. It has 39 goals in 18 games.
Glory, despite leading the competition, is fifth on the goal-scoring list with 32.
It is only two goals behind equal-third highest-scoring teams Adelaide United and Sydney FC, and three behind Wellington, but there is still the nagging belief Glory isn't as dynamic as the other top sides.
The verdict
Expect Victory to be primed for this match. Glory will be up for it as well, but Victory knows it wasted a chance against Wellington and that it is fortunate enough to have another one up its sleeve.
Glory is certainly capable of winning. Who knows, it may actually have the wood on this Victory side. But those periods during which it has been a bit down in recent games is a worry.
Victory let itself down against Phoenix, but it did at least create the necessary chances to win. The likelihood is that it will be more deadly in the finishing department on this occasion.
Victory to win.
