And he's called for fans to drop their misgivings of his under-pressure management to help him get it.

Victory are winless in five, including two tough contests in Asia, and resume in the A-League on Saturday night against the Reds off the back of three straight defeats that have put a cloud on his tenure.

It doesn't help Victory's chances of breaking their streak that they only landed back in Melbourne on Thursday afternoon, almost 48 hours after their 4-1 loss to Shanghai SIPG.

But Muscat isn't in an excuse-making mood for his group, hoping to pull a memorable performance out of the fire against their original rivals.

"We've got a resilient group with some tough characters in that group and we're going to have to stand up tomorrow night," he said.

"(Losing three in a row) is a genuine issue.

"We maybe looked and thought we could be in a better position at the start of the season than what we are now.

"But the reality is we are where we are.

"I'm getting on with my responsibilities. At this point in time it sounds like our season's over with all the commentary and talk but there's still seven games to go."

Muscat was booed by Victory fans on their last home league showing, a 2-1 defeat by Brisbane Roar, and has called for more encouragement from the stands - with a quid pro quo.

"By all accounts there's going to be a decent crowd here tomorrow night. What I will say is the players need our fans to support them and get behind them," he said.

"The flip side of that is the fans need the players to go out and put on a performance to make them happy. That's what we're going to be trying to do tomorrow night."

Muscat will give his travel-weary players until the last possible moment to show their fitness.

Matias Sanchez, who is not a part of their ACL squad, didn't travel and could feature.

For Adelaide, Ersan Gulum is out with suspension, with Johan Absalonsen (glute) and Tarek Elrich (knee) off the Reds' injury list.

STATS THAT MATTER

* United are on the brink of something they've never achieved; back-to-back away wins over Victory - after their 2-1 defeat of Muscat's side at Etihad Stadium in December.

* Reds striker George Blackwood's winner in that match started the best run of his young career - with five goals in eight matches since.

* Victory have lost their last three games; Adelaide have one loss in their last seven.

Australian Associated Press