Australia was announced as co-hosts for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023, but there is another major tournament for them to participate in.
The AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022, hosted by India, takes place from 20th January to 6th February – when the final will be played at D.Y. Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. With two runners up finishes in the last two editions, the Matildas will certainly be eyeing that final berth and will be keen to finish with the trophy in their hands.
Australia play their opening group game at Mumbai Football Arena, Mumbai on Friday 21st Jan at 3:30pm local time.
“We have prepared well. The staff and players have imparted a lot of knowledge about the Asian Cup and the teams. I have big faith in the players to perform well,” said Head Coach Tony Gustavsson in the pre-tournament press conference.
The good news is that all 23 Matildas are fully fit and available for selection come Friday. While the side boasts six senior players with 100+ caps to their name, rookies Cortnee Vine & Holly McNamara have also joined the squad on the back of a great run of A-League Women form. Vice-Captain Steph Catley is happy with the new energy that these players have brought to the training environment.
The Arsenal trio of Caitlin Foord, Lydia Williams & Steph Catley are on 95, 95 and 96 caps respectively, and can be expected to reach the three figure mark if Australia progresses in the tournament as planned.
When questioned about the near-miss of fourth place at the Olympics, Tony Gustavsson had a clear response, showing signs of a strong and fighting mentality.
“We have to be humble and clear that we are focussing only on the opening game. We have to ask ourselves why we haven’t been able to take a trophy home recently. We have identified some key areas that will help us go all the way. Our first goal is to win the group with all the players available during the playoffs.”
Catley commented on the Olympic experience and said it was a big step for them.
“We’ve played a lot of big tournaments and got further and further. We have the quality and experience to challenge for medals and trophies – that is why the Asian Cup is a big motivator for us.”
Gustavsson emphasized the importance of each and every member of that squad of 23.
“When I talk about my team, it is not the starting XI but also the finishing XI. The planning in the back of my head is to get out of the group stage but we need to focus on the opening game and we need to be all in. First, to last minute, we want to play high energy, high-tempo attacking game, that is our main focus right now.”
Many players have made their way to this tournament from chilly regions of Europe, but sunny Mumbai with a temperature of 29°C and 55% humidity will be their home for the next fortnight. In a big tournament like this, every game will be tough. The onus is on Australia to tick all the boxes, execute their plans and forge their own path of success, having fallen just short on the two previous occasions.
Not long to go now!
Get in the mood for our first game of the 2022 @afcasiancup tomorrow night with our match preview ⬇️
🇦🇺 v 🇮🇩 – 21.1.22 – Mumbai Football Arena – 9:00pm AEDT @10FootballAU#WeAreMatildas #WAC2022https://t.co/Y3pR7Pr0UY
— CommBank Matildas (@TheMatildas) January 20, 2022
Australia plays Indonesia on Friday, a team that is likely to sit in a low block and attack on the counter. Gustavsson is confident of their game plans and mentions there is a lot of formation flexibility within the group to tackle whatever comes their way.
“We have the tremendous ability to adapt formation-wise, but the principle by which we play will remain the same – high-intensity football. We have worked on how to unlock spaces within teams that sit back. We have also worked on set-pieces a lot.”
Talking about potential goals, it is only fair to mention Matildas elite striker Sam Kerr, who is one goal shy of the 50-goal milestone and equalling Tim Cahill’s Australia goalscoring record.
Here is Steph Catley’s take on Sam Kerr.
🗣🇦🇺 Steph Catley on Sam Kerr 1 goal away from becoming the all-time leading goal scorer for AUS – ‘Sam always approaches every tournament & every game the same, no matter what record she is about to break. She is just thinking about how to help the team.
— Radha🧣 (@radhalathgupta) January 20, 2022
Make sure you catch the #AUSvIDN match on Friday at 9pm AEDT on 10 Football and watch the Tillies make their first mark in the quest to top Group B!
Follow Beyond 90’s coverage of the Matildas.
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