This was the phrase that kept cropping up throughout Matildas head coach Tony Gustavsson’s press conference this week when he announced the squad for the upcoming friendlies in Denmark and Sweden.
With only these two games before the squad for the Olympics has to be announced and the lack of international games for Australia over the past 16 months, Gustavsson has little time to mould the Matildas into the type of team he wants before Tokyo.
He outlined the process behind his selection by revealing that “Over the last two months, Mel Andreatta and I, with the rest of the coaching staff have been reviewing player performances from the talent ID camp, across Europe, the US and watched past Matildas games as well.
“Now that we’ve got the draw for the Olympics, we also know the opponents. We can picture the kind of games that we’re going to face and the tactics needed in terms of game plans, and our analysts and scouts have done a good job in helping us know what that will look like.
“We are very aware that there are very few days between this squad being announced and the one for the Olympics. The squad we’ve selected [for the games with Sweden and Denmark], we feel give us the best chance of being ready for that opening whistle in the Olympics.
“We needed to select players who offer balance in the roster; different play types and flexibility across forwards, midfield and backs and ability to move between them. We can only take 16 outfield players, so we need multifunctional players there. So from the 25 players selected in this squad, we know only 18 can represent us in the Olympics and the players will be selecting themselves from now on. It’s about how they perform in training and games.
“With this small squad, we had to make some really tough decisions in the best interests of the team. To be honest, we are very blessed with attacking talents – we are even overloaded there. That made me have to keep some of the attacking players outside of this roster, very good players who individually might have deserved to come in, but because of that overload, I had to leave them out of the roster at this time.”
The comments in the last paragraph would go some way to answer those pressing for Lisa De Vanna’s recall to the national setup and so potentially leaves the door open for her in the future.
Gustavsson also specifically addressed the absence of Chloe Logarzo due to injury and offered hope to the midfielder which highlighted what a key player he believes she is. “I’ve been getting updates daily on Chloe. I’ve been talking to her. We were in dialogue, I wanted to meet her. Unfortunately, she is injured and not in a position to train. If her rehab goes well, she is still in there with a chance of getting a roster spot for the Olympics. I personally hope we can bring her in as part of the ongoing training camp before I have to make a firm decision on the Olympic roster. It’s a challenging situation for her, but we’re keeping a close eye on her and maintaining constant dialogue.”
Turning back to the players selected, the Matildas coach emphasised “The next couple of weeks are about building. Building that team and chemistry so we all see the same picture. Everyone comes from different backgrounds, different club environments, different tactics, playing at different levels and different leagues. Now it is about coming together to make sure everyone sees the same picture. It’s about chemistry and connection between players to find that cohesion ASAP.”
The outcome was a squad that was a mix of old faces and new ones. Gustavsson highlighted that even though experienced players such as Kyah Simon, Ellie Carpenter, Elise Kellond-Knight, and Steph Catley are returning to the squad, it will be the first time he has personally met them.
“We’ve brought a lot of new players in. Fifty percent of the outfield players are in the squad for the first time with me. Fifty percent of the players I’ve never met in person. So even though it’s the second camp for me, it’s actually the first one for a lot of the players with me as a new coach and that is a challenge in itself. It’s all about getting them on the same page ASAP.”
On the selection of Elise Kellond-Knight, Gustavsson revealed that at the present time she still might not be match ready, but he needed to have her in camp.
“I’ve been in contact with the medical team at Hammarby and have been to watch her in training. It’s a bit of a unique situation. Normally in a national team environment, you bring players in who are up to speed. This has been a unique year. This is the only opportunity I have to meet KK and see her in training. She is most likely not game-ready, but I have to take this opportunity. That is partly why I’ve brought more players into this camp as there are players who I felt I had to bring into the Matildas environment to train. It’s too early to say whether she will be ready for the Olympics.”
Whilst Gustavsson wouldn’t be drawn specifically on the uncapped players he has brought in for these games (Teagan Micah, Kyra Cooney-Cross, Charli Grant, and Courtney Nevin), he did explain the thought process behind their selection: “We have made sure that we came in with a blank piece of paper and look at everything with opened eyes. If players perform well, they need to know that the door to the Matildas is open. We are always going to have an eye on the long-term journey.
“These four players bring some different characteristics – everything from left-footed play to high intensity running, to depths and alternatives. It’s also based on performances in clubland, youth national team environments and talent ID camps. I have to credit my staff here. Mel Andreatta has done a phenomenal job in building a scouting network and collaborating with people in the local landscape. Mel has been so important to me in all the work that she’s been able to put in together with all the staff over there. I am able to look at minute after minute of games. There has been a lot of work to get to the position of selecting these players.”
He also revealed that the Scandinavian friendlies will be the beginning of a long spell in camp for the majority of the Matildas. “The players whose club seasons are over, we have the privilege of being able to keep them in a training camp until we go to Tokyo. That period will be focusing on training and fitness because with the humidity in Japan, we know that fitness is the key to success and also player availability.”
In terms of what he is expecting from the matches, Gustavsson was clear that things are still very much a work in progress.
“We only have three days together before the first game against Denmark to all see that same picture. Is it going to look perfect? Probably not, but we want to take steps. The first part of the camp will be a lot of tactics and seeing how we want to play plus game management, flexibility, and tactics.”
“We have a lot of players coming back from injury: Alanna Kennedy, Steph Catley, Elise Kellond-Knight. We need to ensure we invest in their individual fitness.”
Gustavsson then outlined specifically why he was so keen to face Denmark and Sweden along with the different threats that they pose.
“When you are choosing opponents, you are looking at different things. Quality obviously, but you also want to play different tactics, different formations, and different principles of how people play. In choosing Denmark, you might look at the rankings and think ‘that won’t be too tough a game’, but this is a quality side. Look at their passing game. They are really good and well organised. They also have world-class forwards in Nadia Nadim and Pernille Harder.
“They will challenge us in our defending. If you look back at our games in April, we need to focus on our defending. To be challenged by those two world-class forwards is something we need to experience. The same with Sweden given the form they are in right now.”
“In terms of Sweden, it is unusual to be facing the same team we will face in the Olympics group game. I expect it to be a really tough game. It’s our last one before we go to Tokyo, so it’s important to get some answers. It’s hard to play Sweden in Sweden. They almost beat the USA here recently – perhaps should have beaten the USA. It will be tactical and physical.”
The press conference closed by looking at how the Matildas set up is working to support players’ mental health.
“This is a huge part of what we’re doing right now and I really have to credit Football Australia here. The interest and investment they are giving the well-being perspective is very good. We look at the players holistically. First and foremost I work with people, second I work with players. We need to respect people. The fact that we have a performance side where players can reach out whenever they want to work on individual elements plus a well-being manager.
“One thing that really impressed me from the camp in April is the inner drive that the players have. They are thriving under this pressure. They are looking forward to competing in that tournament mode – but we need to balance that with the well-being and psychology side of things.”
When it came to inner-drive, Gustavsson specifically turned to highlight Sam Kerr. “We all know what she can do football-wise, but her mental strength is impressive. Just look at how hard she was criticised early in her time in England and now she has come through it to show what sort of a player she is. She’s had a phenomenal season.
“As a team, we did not activate her and play to her strengths in the games against Germany and the Netherlands and that is something I’ve looked deeply into. She got criticised after those games for not performing at her level, but that was our fault in not activating her in the way we need to.
“Having said that, Sam should not be feeling that she has to carry the team on her shoulders. It’s a team effort – me, the coaches, and the other players. We need to do it as a collective in order for her to be as successful as possible. This is a team development journey with a superstar upfront.”
Denmark v Matildas
Friday, 11 June 2021 – 2am (AEST) / 6pm local
CASA Arena, Horsens
Sweden v Matildas
Wednesday, 16 June 2021 – 2.45am (AEST) / 6.45pm local
Kalmar Arena, Kalmar
Both fixtures will be broadcast on Fox Sports, Kayo, ABC TV, and the MyFootballLive app.
