Melbourne City will confront their away-day demons this weekend with a long-standing A-League goal in their sights, and in their own hands.
In Perth, City needs to avoid heavy defeat and match Brisbane Roar's result against Wellington if they are to seal third spot and conditionally book a place in next season's Asian Champions League.
Michael Valkanis' side has the advantage of playing last in the round, meaning they will know the precise equation in front of them.
Should Brisbane slip up at home, a point against the Glory will be enough to secure third spot.
The ACL has been a stated goal for City Football Group since it took control of the club, and as defender Osama Malik explained, a chief motivator for players as well.
"It's a massive game for us given we're trying to qualify for Asia," he said on Wednesday.
"That's why we've been aiming for that third spot once we found out we wouldn't be able to make second
"We want to be a club that can challenge for titles and ... it's the biggest club comp in Asia."
City, which makes no secret of its ambitions and has deep pockets to help realise them, would be an exciting prospect as an Australian representative in Asia.
Whereas other clubs without City's resources have sometimes seen the overlapping competition as a distraction from A-League duties, City is likely to embrace the challenge fully.
There's another reason why third place is crucial for Valkanis' side.
Claiming third and winning their elimination final with either Perth or Western Sydney would put them into a semifinal with Melbourne Victory.
For a club with a poor away record this season, playing at home could be their best route to a possible Grand Final.
Malik said it all contributed to motivate the City squad, which isn't buying into the notion that they can't win on the road.
"We haven't won as many away games as we'd like this season but we're confident with the personnel we have in our squad," he said.
"It hasn't been a problem with the performances, it's probably just been the little instances where we've conceded or conceded too many in short spaces.
"It's not that we look back and say we're not good enough. It's more a case of sharpening up a couple of things."