Adelaide coach John Kosmina has thrown his support behind the club that once sacked him, Sydney FC, after inflicting the last-placed Sky Blues' fourth straight loss.
The Reds continued their brilliant start to the season under Kosmina, extending their lead atop the competition with a 2-1 win at Allianz Stadium on Friday night.
It was Adelaide's sixth win in eight rounds, and they sit 13 points ahead of a sorry Sydney outfit.
Kosmina was shown the door by the Sky Blues in 2009 after almost two seasons in charge but was sympathetic when asked if they could turn things around, saying the were a better side than results would suggest.
"They're a decent team," Kosmina said.
"Things haven't fallen for them and (Friday's loss) would have hurt them a lot because they did so well to get back in the game and stay in the game.
"When things don't go for you, you've just got to work your way through it."
Adelaide, led by the impressive Dario Vidosic, are fully deserving of their standing as surprise competition front-runners after a consistent run of strong performances.
But Kosmina insists they're still capable of plenty of improvement.
And, doing his best impression of NRL counterpart Des Hasler, he's keen to play down his side's run of form and likes to think they're still slipping "under the radar".
Asked whether his side was the league's team to beat at present Kosmina said:
"No. I think Central Coast are still the team to beat. Brisbane are still a team to beat. Melbourne Victory are the team to beat ... because it's easier to fly under the radar.
"We're travelling okay but we can't ever afford to get too complacent."
Interim Sky Blues coach Steve Corica said there were several positives to take out of the loss, but admitted frustrations were growing.
Marquee star Alessandro Del Piero was visibly agitated at times during the match and Corica said it was understandable.
"He's frustrated we're losing. I think everyone's frustrated. He hasn't lost for a long time back in Italy. We're losing games and it's not nice," Corica said.
Former Socceroos midfielder Jason Culina made his first appearance in almost two years off the bench but Corica said he would not likely start for several weeks as he eases back into action from a career-threatening knee injury.
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