Joe Montemurro speaks about difficult decision to he to leave European powerhouse and take Matildas’ job

The newly-minted Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has admitted he had no plans to leave his post at European powerhouse Lyon, but the lure of breaking a 15-year drought was too big a drawcard.

Joe Montemurro almost said no.

The newly-minted Matildas coach admitted he had no plans to leave powerhouse European football club Lyon mid-contract, but after months of deliberations the lure of returning home and coaching the Australian national team to a first trophy in 15 years was too big to turn down.

“In all honesty it wasn’t easy,” Montemurro said.

“It was something that developed over the last three or four months. I put everything into context in regard to the opportunities coming up with three major tournaments and the brand that is the Matildas, which has always been close to my heart from working in women’s football pretty much all of my career.

“I just decided that it was the right time, I can’t give you solid facts, I can only give you what I was thinking inside and it feels like the right time.”

Montemurro signed with Lyon, one of the most successful women’s football clubs in the world, in June 2024.

Joe Montemurro said that it wasn’t easy leaving Lyon. Picture: Franco Arland – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images

Tony Gustavsson’s tenure as Matildas coach ended just two months later after the team’s dismal performance at the Paris Olympics.

Under contract until 2027, Football Australia couldn’t approach Montemurro directly about the Matildas job – nor could he apply for it. 

“Heather (Garriock, FA interim CEO) and myself had sort of touched base every once in a while but obviously being in contract it had to be a little bit more formal,” Montemurro said.

“FA went through the agent and the agent then contacted the club and the club then gave them permission to speak to me, but it’s been a process to be honest.”

Tony Gustavsson’s departure was at the completely wrong time for Montemurro. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Montemurro at the Matildas’ match against Argentina in Canberra, early June. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

CODE Sports understands that Lyon didn’t want to let Montemurro go – he had just guided the team to yet another French title and the semi-finals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League.

It was one of the sport’s worst kept secrets that FA had coveted Montemurro for the job for some time but the coach said he only made his decision about three months ago.

“We (Lyon) did embark on a bit of a process, there was a cycle finishing and there were nine players coming out of contract, I think of eight of them we decided we were going to let go and we’d already started a recruiting binge in regards to new players coming in,” Montemurro said.

“I was very much a part of that, once I made the decision we had to redirect the work they were doing, it’s always difficult.

“But football has a way of taking different directions and this is one of them.”

The Challenge

At the 2023 World Cup the Matildas brand and popularity exploded – leading to unprecedented viewership and ticket sales.

While the hype around the team hasn’t dwindled over the past two years – their performances have.

The Matildas were bundled out of the Olympics in the group stage – their worst performance at the tournament in 20 years.

Montemurro said he was well aware his new role would be challenging.

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup lifted the Matildas to unprecedented levels. Picture: Supplied

But that was part of the attraction.

“That’s the exciting thing about what we do, every opportunity that I’ve had in football has come with different challenges,” Montemurro said.

“Melbourne City was to build a team from scratch, Arsenal was to get the team from being a mid-table team back into the top two or three, Juventus was Champions League and UEFA coefficient from 33rd to eighth in Europe and Lyon was to keep the standards and start the rebuild.

“The Matildas one is a fantastic challenge – to keep that level of brands at a high level but also now with a couple of trophy opportunities coming around the corner, we want to keep that legacy going and hopefully win something.”

Montemurro coaching Melbourne City in 2016. Picture: Kylie Else

Adding to the challenge is the fact the first trophy opportunity – the Asian Cup – is just nine months away. It might seem like a decent amount of time but there are just four international windows for games left in that nine months.

“The timing doesn’t worry me,” Montemurro said.

“A lot of the players are playing at good levels, in good form and in good shape and it is just a matter of starting the process, building into the Asian Cup and making sure we’ve got the best possible squad available.”

Montemurro revealed this week prolific striker Sam Kerr had had further surgery, not related to her ACL injury. While he didn’t go into details the coach said he was confident Kerr, who hasn’t played since January 2024, would be fit in time for the Asian Cup.

Being physically fit isn’t the only issue – he needs the players mentally fit for tournament football.

Something that can be hard to manage when the players are only under Montemurro’s control for such a short period of time.

Montemurro is confident Kerr will be fit for the Asian Cup. Picture: Izihar Khan / AFP

Mental load

Since the World Cup and the Olympics players including Cortnee Vine and Mary Fowler have opted out of national team camps citing a need to focus on their mental health.

Montemurro said having what he called “mental freshness” coming into a camp was a learned skill.

“High level performance sport brings that pressure, brings a lot of external pressure,” he said.

“I think the biggest learning for the players at the moment, especially the ones who have just gone over to the big leagues in Europe, is to find that balance. They have to balance the external because it’s there, you can’t walk away from it.

“But also make sure that football is the centrepiece of everything they do.”

Mary Fowler is feeling the mental load of international obligations. Picture: Scott Gardiner/Getty Images

Montemurro said he would be putting in place individual development plans and working closely with every players’ clubs to maintain contact and ensure everyone stayed healthy.

First steps

There are just three weeks until Montemurro’s first game in charge of the national team.

The Matildas will play two, two-game series in Perth against Slovenia and Panama.

Montemurro doesn’t have plans for huge sweeping changes and new tactics … just yet.

There are just three weeks until Montemurro’s first match in charge of the Matildas. Picture: Matt King/Getty Images

“We need to focus on the way we want to play, once you’ve got that belief and once we are all on the same page with that then everything’s easy,” Montemurro said.

But come the Asian Cup the Matildas will be playing a very possession based game.

“I’ve always been a bit of a risk taker as a coach. I always want my teams to control the situation with the ball,” he said.

“For the team to be world class we just have to find that little bit of dynamics and belief in going forward and a bit more belief with the ball.”

The next generation

As part of the deal Montemurro will move back home to Australia – which will go a long way to mending the bridge between the youth squads and the senior national team which was neglected during the Gustavsson era.

Kaitlyn Torpey and Isabel Gomez are part of the Matildas’ next generation. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

The Swedish coach never relocated to Australia – he was rarely spotted at A-League’s Women’s games and had little involvement in the under-age national teams.

“For me it is really important to be here,” Montemurro said.

“It’s really important to feel the energy of the game on a local scale, it’s really important to work with the youth teams in the development of the game, it is a fundamental part of this role. It gives you the understanding of the sustainability of our next batch of players.”

It was A-League Women’s side Melbourne City where Montemurro really announced himself as a coach and he hasn’t ever stopped watching the league.

“I’ve watched a lot of A-League and for me it is brilliant how we are giving opportunities to a lot of younger players,” he said.

“We have players that are 18, 19, 20 years old that are already getting 40, 50 games under their belt, it is fantastic because you only develop by playing more football, it is as simple as that.”

Originally published as Joe Montemurro speaks about difficult decision to he to leave European powerhouse and take Matildas’ job