Tony Popovic has a pre-Sydney derby message for Graham Arnold: you dont know what this Western Sydney squad can do, but you will after Saturday night.Sledges have been slung and flames fanned between the Wanderers and Sydney FC camps in the lead-up to one of the biggest clashes in A-League history - in front of an anticipated crowd of at least 60,000 at ANZ Stadium.Sky Blues captain Alex Brosque kicked off the war of words with his we hate every single one of them comment.Fiery Wanderers stalwart Brendon Santalab then had a dig, suggesting Brosques disappointing comments were made because some of his family members support the Wanderers.But the barbs werent restricted to the players.Coach Arnold was typically irreverent, declaring that the match venue of ANZ Stadium, one of the Wanderers new temporary home grounds, in fact belonged to Sydney on the basis theyd played more games there in the past.But it was Arnolds suggestion that his harbour-side glamour team have the edge over a less-experienced Western Sydney line-up that enticed the usually composed Popovic to take the bait.I dont think he knows too much about our side, so hes alluding to something he doesnt know much about, Popovic said.I hope once they watch us tomorrow theyll know us very well.Were confident, were optimistic.We wanted to challenge for honours in year one and we expect to do the same this year.Theres a high expectation tomorrow - we expect to win.We havent ever done that in round one, we havent done that against Sydney FC in a while.To be exact, 1001 days by the time the ball is in play.The Sky Blues are undefeated in their last seven games against the Wanderers.It is fact that Popovics new-look squad boasts less players with first-hand derby experience, taking into consideration his annual batch of new recruits and the suspension of skipper Nikolai Topor-Stanley.But fans are excited to see what Argentine marquee playmaker Nicolas Martinez can offer in combination with returned striker Kerem Bulut.The controversial Bulut became an instant fan favourite in February 2015 when, on A-League debut, he scored a brace in a 4-3 Sydney derby loss at Pirtek Stadium.Popovic would not confirm his squad but Robert Cornthwaite appears the obvious choice to replace Topor-Stanley in central defence.Theyll have their hands full with Sydneys new Brazilian marquee striker Bobo, whos already proven dangerous in a strengthened final third also featuring his former Besiktas teammate Filip Holosko, David Carney, Serbian playmaker Milos Ninkovic and fit-again captain Alex Brosque.Winger Bernie Ibini is an outside chance of being named on the bench despite having played no minutes since overcoming a bad leg break suffered at the start of last season.STATS THAT MATTER:* Sydney FC are undefeated against Western Sydney in the last two seasons, having won five of their last seven games* Sydney havent lost an opening-round game since 2012-13; the Wanderers have never won an opening match* Brendon Santalab has scored five goals in his last four appearances Tiger Williams Jersey . -- Quarterback Will Finch threw for 252 yards and three touchdowns, and Yannick Harou rushed in two scores as the No. Grant Fuhr Jersey . -- The Sacramento Kings are set to become the first major professional sports franchise to accept Bitcoin virtual currency for ticket and merchandise purchases. http://www.cheapmapleleafsjerseys.com/?tag=adidas-johnny-bower-jersey . The CFLs leading rusher kept adding to his gaudy numbers this season and scored the winning touchdown with just over two minutes to play. The New Westminster, B.C., native plowed three yards into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-saw battle between the two teams with the best records in the CFL. Connor Brown Jersey . The No. 1-ranked Nadal tweaked his back warming up for the Australian Open final, which he lost almost four weeks ago in a major upset against Stanislas Wawrinka. His first stop after the layoff is the clay in Rio as he tests the back and tries to stay healthy for the French Open in three months. Matt Martin Jersey .C. at the helm of the top team in the Eastern Conference. His tenure as the GM in Vancouver was all too brief. Though he led the Canucks to what was then a franchise record-shattering campaign in just his second season, Nonis was gone and replaced one year later. Greeny and Golic welcome ESPN NFL analyst Mark Schlereth (6:05 a.m. ET), Super Bowl XXXV champion Brian Billick (7:30), SEC Networks Booger McFarland (8:00) and First Takes Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman (9:00) to the show on Thursday.Get in touch with Mike & Mike by emailing (mikeandmike@espnnradio.dddddddddddd.com) or tweeting (@MikeAndMike) the guys -- we will be with you from 6-10 a.m. ET. Follow all of the action on ESPN2, ESPN Radio and ESPNRadio.com. ' ' '