Australia must be ‘smart’ to beat Japan in Women’s Asian Cup final, says coach Joe Montemurro

MELBOURNE – Coach Joe Montemurro told his Australia team on March 20 that they must be adaptable and “smart” to win the Women’s Asian Cup for the first time since 2010 and avenge two gut-wrenching losses to Japan in the continental final.

The sides face off for the trophy on March 21 at Stadium Australia in Sydney in a repeat of the 2014 and 2018 title deciders, which Japan won 1-0 on both occasions.

Nils Nielsen’s world No. 6 side go into the clash in seemingly invincible form, after cruising through the tournament with five convincing wins and 28 goals scored to just one conceded.

In contrast, hosts Australia have had to knuckle down and fight hard.

Montemurro claimed there were “no favourites in a final”.

“It’s the one who wants it more and the one who is smart enough to manage the moments,” the 56-year-old said.

“Adaptability is the word. I think this team is able to adapt accordingly. When we’ve had our backs against the wall, we’ve changed things slightly and been able to find a way.

“When you’re in these contests, you know that ability to be selfless and adapt is really, really important.”

Nielsen said after Japan’s 4-1 semi-final thumping of South Korea that the Matildas would be “massive favourites” given the expected partisan home crowd.

But the 54-year-old changed his tune on the eve of the final.

“We are talking about a final in a major tournament. Both teams can win,” he said.

“They know precisely our strength, they know their strength. They know weaknesses from us, they know their own weaknesses. It’s completely 50-50 in the final and anyone that knows football knows that’s true, what I’m saying. So it’s going to be, hopefully, a battle from another world between two great teams.”

It will be the biggest game Australia have played since their run to the World Cup semi-finals on home soil in 2023.

While many of the current squad were part of their two previous Asian Cup final defeats by Japan, captain Sam Kerr is the sole survivor from the 2010 side which emerged as champions.

Dubbed the golden generation by Australian media, finally winning a trophy together would be a dream come true for the likes of Arsenal defender Steph Catley and Chelsea’s Ellie Carpenter.

“I’ve been playing with a lot of these girls since I was 13 years old and we’ve not won a major trophy,” said Catley. “We’ve put ourselves in a position a few times and had a few fourths. It would just be incredible to come away with a trophy for this group.”

Carpenter said winning at home would be “the cherry on top”.

“Tomorrow’s an amazing opportunity for us to hopefully do that.

“We need to bring our aggressiveness, our physical game, our speed into this game tomorrow because we know Japan probably won’t like that,” she added.

In other news, the bidding process for the 2031 and 2035 Asian Cup men’s tournaments has been halted due to pending changes in the global football calendar, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced on March 20.

The Malaysia-based body said the move had come after talks with football’s world governing body Fifa, regarding a possible switch in the international match calendar that would see the Asian Cup played in even-numbered years.

“Given the far-reaching implications such a change would have on the scheduling and strategic planning of its premier national team competition, the AFC has initiated a broader review of its competitions calendar,” it said in a statement.

“As part of this process, it has been deemed appropriate to halt the current bidding cycles to provide greater clarity and ensure a more structured approach to future host selections.” AFP, REUTERS