‘Honour of a lifetime’: Joe Montemurro appointed as new Matildas coach

Football Australia has finally confirmed the new coach of the Matildas after a lengthy wait.

New Matildas coach Joe Montemurro is confident he has enough time to turn Australia into a team capable of winning next year’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup and is optimistic that injured stars Sam Kerr and Mary Fowler can play prominent roles.

After a drawn-out process, Football Australia on Monday finally confirmed Montemurro’s appointment, leaving him nine months to find a way to turn the Matildas from a team that fails to live up its surrounding hype into an outfit capable of winning a major tournament.

The 54-year-old Melbourne-born mentor – whose previous jobs included title-winning stints as coach of the women’s teams of Arsenal, Juventus and most recently Lyon – replaces interim Matildas coach Tom Sermanni, whose final game in charge will be Australia’s clash with Argentina in Canberra on Monday night.

Sermanni was appointed interim boss in September last year soon after the departure of Tony Gustavsson following the Matildas’ poor Olympic Games campaign.

Joe Montemurro has been named as the Matildas’ new coach. Picture: Paul Harding/Getty Images

Football Australia interim chief executive Heather Garriock defended her organisation for the length of time it took with its “global search” to find a full-time replacement for Gustavsson.

“These processes take time, in this case, a little bit more time than we expected,” Garriock said.

“From the very start, Football Australia has been committed to finding the right coach and not the first coach.

“There were many considerations and many moving parts, and I’m glad we have finally got our man, the right man, who will take this team to the next level, I am sure.”

Montemurro said being appointed Matildas coach – at least until the 2028 Olympics – was the “honour of a lifetime”, but leaving French outfit Lyon, one of the world’s most prominent clubs in women’s football, after just one season was “difficult”.

“Lyon’s an amazing club. I had an amazing season there, and obviously the situation was to continue the process, but I assessed a few things,” he said.

“I said to myself, and my wife and family, that this is now an exciting cycle for the Matildas, (with) the Asian Cup, (the 2027) World Cup, (the 2028) Olympic Games, and the opportunity was too good, plus there was something inside of me that was just telling me ‘it’s time’.

“I had to make a hard decision, a very difficult decision, but I believe the decision is the right one.

“This team means so much to so many Australians, and I’m humbled by the opportunity to help shape its next chapter.”

Montemurro, who was scheduled to meet the team in Canberra on Monday afternoon, praised Sermanni for the head start he had given him in getting the Matildas – who haven’t won a major tournament since 2010 – ready for the Women’s Asian Cup, which starts in March next year in Australia.

“Tom’s been able to build a process, give some opportunities to some players, stabilise the situation, and then from there we can bring it forward,” he said.

“It’s all set up for me to take over with the staff and bring it to the next level. Is the Asian Cup winnable? Of course it is.”

Tom Sermanni’s stint as Matildas interim coach will end on Monday night in Canberra following Montemurro’s appointment. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

And “winnable” with a squad containing star Chelsea striker Kerr, who hasn’t played since rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in her knee in January last year, and key playmaker Fowler, who suffered a similar injury in April playing for her club, Manchester City.

Montemurro said he would “map out a process” with Kerr that would include a “profile” of her “physical” and “mental” recovery.

“You can get fit, you can get things right tactically, but then some players go through processes where, you (ask) ‘are they mentally prepared for the tournament’?” he said.

“Sam fits into that scenario where we’re going to assess and monitor and see where she’s at.

“Let’s get her fit and right, and then we’ll have those discussions from there.”

He said Fowler was a “special player” who was in the “best environment” at Manchester City to make a full recovery in time for the Women’s Asian Cup.

“Hopefully, she’ll be right (for the tournament),” Montemurro said.

Originally published as ‘Honour of a lifetime’: Joe Montemurro appointed as new Matildas coach