Ben Gilby reports on the Matildas’ post-match media conference after their Third Place Play-Off defeat to Sweden as head coach Tony Gustavsson outlined the “serious investment” he wants to see now, and players Caitlin Foord and Alex Chidiac reflected on an incredible month (20/8/23).
Above: Matildas boss Tony Gustavsson at last night’s post-match media conference. Image: CommBank Matildas/Football Australia.
Australia head coach Tony Gustavsson used his post-match media conference after his side’s third-place play-off to call for “serious investment” in the women’s game in the country, outlining the specific areas he believes needs it.
“All I can say is I love working with this team. It resonates with me as a coach – their identity and their ‘why’. I don’t see this as the end of a journey, I see it as a beginning. But I want to be really clear – I want to see investment now, I really do. I want to see real investment that says we’re serious about what we want to do.”
Tony Gustavsson, Australia head coach.
“We have a massive amount of work to do now to capitalise on this. It is a massive achievement for these players if you compare the resources of the top ten-ranked teams. It’s unique. These players, have in some way, overachieved if you look at where they play compared to the top ten nations in terms of how many players do we have in top teams in the top leagues that are starting consistently.
“The FA (Football Australia) will do an in-depth review in a few weeks’ time as they did after the Olympics and Asian Cup. In that review we will learn a lot.
“In terms of investment, there are several key areas – the grassroots and facilities…I’m passionate about the high-performance space. The other area I’m passionate about is the U20 and U23 space. The gap from the youth national team to the national team – we need huge investment in that space. We have seen some players come through where that step is too big.”
Reflecting on the actual match itself, Gustavsson admitted his team found it hard to cope with Sweden’s opening assault, the type of display that saw them overcome Japan in their Quarter-Final tie.
“Sweden came out flying. The first 15 minutes they were all over us – pressing high, very direct in their attack. I don’t think we handled that very well. When we played over that press and started an attack against their backline we had a couple of really good sequences. Then we had that PK that really cost us, it hurt us a lot in terms of the momentum in the game. At the end of the day we lost to a better team tonight.”
After a tough quarter-final with France last Saturday, and a semi-final with England just three days ago, Gustavsson highlighted why he stayed with the same team selection for last nights game in Brisbane.
“If I’d roped in a lot of different players and we lost, then it would have been ‘Why did you change it’? When I said we needed 23 players in 20(23) that doesn’t mean that (all) 23 players should play (a part in the campaign). It was that we needed 23 players. The way the players have stuck together and supported each other, even if it’s the second or third-choice goalkeepers or Kyah Simon…it has been 23 for (20)23.
“In terms of substitutions, we have a clear strategy based on experience and stats. If you look at teams who have gone far in men’s and women’s tournaments continuity of roster have been success factors. The players know this has been a clear strategy. They saw it in the Olympics and they saw it now. We think this might be the reason why we have been able to break barriers, bypass history and create history.
“We did know today that we needed to go to the bench earlier. Trying to find the right time and momentum, when do you do it – unfortunately we conceded that second goal two minutes after we did that double sub. That hurt us a bit tonight.”
The sense is, with the USA potentially circling Gustavsson to be their new head coach, his future could well come down to the powers that be persuading him that they are serious about putting money into the women’s game in Australia to make the future as bright as the present. Football has had so many missed opportunities in the country over the decades gone, it cannot be allowed to happen again.
A battered and bruised Caitlin Foord spoke of her mixed emotions after the match as disappointment was combined with pride.
Showing the after-effects of her challenge before half-time with Sweden’s Kosovare Asllani, the Arsenal attacker said: “At this moment we’re fourth in the world but it’s disappointing not to finish the tournament with something round our neck. We feel like we deserved it, we left everything out there, but it wasn’t to be.”
Foord revealed that the true reality of the impact that The Matildas have had on Australia is yet to be fully appreciated by herself and the wider team – something that should change today in their ceremony in Brisbane.
“I never imagined it would get to where it was got now. It’s hard for us to see exactly what has happened in this country as we’re in our little bubble. We did want to change the game here in our country and I think we’ve done that and I think that’s something we can be very proud of.”
Alex Chidiac, who got the second-half minutes that her legion of A-League Women fans have been begging for all tournament, spoke post-match of her belief that whilst the Matildas have ended the World Cup without a medal, their overall impact will have a longer legacy.
“I don’t ever think we dreamed we’d have this big an impact. You’ve seen it after every game. We never used to have that impact on the Australian public, people yelling our names and wanting to be involved. Obviously, it would have been lovely to win tonight or be in the final tomorrow, but ultimately we have something that will last a lot longer.”
Chidiac, a star at Melbourne Victory underlined the importance of Australian fans now embracing the A-League Women in larger numbers with the new season starting in October.
“I’m hoping that off the back of this, we will have a whole bunch of the Australian public going out to (watch) the A-League Women’s competition and support their local clubs. That’s the league we all came from and got us to this point, and we’re really grateful for that support through the league.
“It would make people want to come back (from Europe to play in it), it would make other internationals come here.”
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