Matildas part ways with coach Gustavsson after Olympics flop

The Matildas are on the hunt for a new coach after Football Australia confirmed Tony Gustavsson’s contract would not be extended beyond their disappointing campaign at Paris 2024 – their worst Olympic result in two decades.

Gustavsson’s deal officially expired on Thursday morning (AEST), when Australia were knocked out of the Olympics with a 2-1 defeat to the United States, and the coach and the federation have wasted little time in making their intentions publicly known.

The decision to part ways was mutual, according to an FA media release, but it comes amid a period of heightened criticism of Gustavsson’s tactics and direction at the Olympics, where the Matildas conceded 10 goals in their three group-stage clashes against Germany, Zambia and the United States, and their set-piece frailties made an unwelcome return.

He finishes with an overall record of 30 wins, seven draws and 22 defeats from his 59 games in charge, having said his goodbyes to players and staff after their loss in Marseille.

“It has been a great honour and privilege to have been able to be the head coach of the Matildas over the past four years,” he said in a statement. “This journey with the team has had many incredible moments and memories that I will forever treasure.

“Thank you to the incredible players for letting me play a small part in their stories, my staff for being beside me every step of the way, Football Australia for backing our vision for this team, the Australian football family for embracing me and the Australian public for the tremendous support.

Tony Gustavsson’s tenure as Matildas coach is over.Credit: Getty Images

“Australian football will be forever in my heart, and I will be watching on and cheering on your success in the future.”

Brought in by FA after a strong recommendation from Jill Ellis, the all-conquering former United States coach under whom he worked, Gustavsson’s rollercoaster four-year tenure in charge of the national team has been characterised by euphoric highs and catastrophic lows across the four major tournaments he oversaw.

He guided them to their best Olympic finish, in Tokyo, where they narrowly missed out on a medal against the US in the third-placed play-off, while they also broke through to the semi-finals of a World Cup for the first time last year, the latter achieved without the injured Sam Kerr during a fraught group stage.

But the Matildas also crashed out of the 2022 Asian Cup in the quarter-finals against South Korea, meekly surrendering their best chance of winning a trophy during Gustavsson’s reign, while their failure to get out of their group in Paris represents the team’s worst run at the Olympics since their debut at Sydney 2000.

Kerr’s absence up front was sorely felt as Australia’s attack failed to fire. Now it will be up to someone else to reintegrate the injured skipper back into the national team when she is due to return from her ACL injury at the start of next year, as well as figure out how to get the best out of Mary Fowler and Caitlin Foord, who were far below their usual standards at the Games.

Questions in the aftermath have centred around the nature of the pre-Olympics camp in Spain, a taxing few weeks that followed a rare two-week break after an intense calendar.

“At the end of every major tournament, regardless of the results, we always have a very comprehensive review, and that will be part of it,” assistant coach Mel Andreatta told media on Thursday in Paris, as the squad went their separate ways. “But we’ve done what we thought was best with information we had at the time.

“Everyone who pulls on this jersey, green and gold, gives their best. Tony gave his best, and that’s all we can ask for.”

FA said the search for the Matildas’ next coach – who will be in charge for the home Asian Cup, to be held in 2026 – would begin immediately, as would a thorough review into what had gone wrong at the Olympics. While this is a golden age for Australian coaches, there are no obvious slam-dunk options.

Joe Montemurro, long touted by fans as an ideal candidate, left Juventus earlier this year but has since found a high-profile job at Olympique Lyonnais. Andreatta, who worked under Gustavsson and his two predecessors, Ante Milicic and Alen Stajcic, would also come under consideration, but her lack of high-level experience as a head coach in her own right may count against her – particularly as the international game continues to rapidly evolve.

“Right now, I’m trying to make sense of all this and just decompress,” Andreatta said after being asked if she would be interested in the job. “I’m actually going home and expecting a first child, so I’ll welcome that baby in the coming weeks and then see how things play out.”

The Matildas console each other on the pitch after their 2-1 loss to the US.Credit: AP

From the A-League Women’s competition, the standout candidate is Ante Juric, the mastermind of Sydney FC’s reign of domestic dominance; they have not missed a grand final since he took on the job in 2017, but he has just signed a long-term contract extension with the club.

FA could seek another foreigner like Gustavsson, but that would come with the trade-off that as with all import coaches, it may take them some time to come to terms with the vagaries and intricacies of the way Australian soccer operates. Gustavsson is one of only three foreigners to take charge of the Matildas in the past 30 years, along with Tom Sermanni (Scotland) and Hesterine de Reus (Netherlands).

“He’s done a lot on and off the field, and we have a lot to thank him for,” Tameka Yallop said on Thursday.

“He really did bring a lot of passion with him from Sweden, and we definitely took advantage of that. We’ve had some amazing finishes at tournaments that we haven’t done before. We made history with him.”

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