‘Best for the team’: Matildas boss points to ‘clear strategy’ behind glaring issue
Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson defended his lack of squad rotation at the Women’s World Cup, insisting it was “what’s best for the team.”
Mackenzie Arnold, Clare Hunt and Steph Catley played every minute of the Matildas’ seven-game tournament while the likes of Katrina Gorry, Kyra Cooney-Cross and Caitlin Foord weren’t far behind.
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Although several Australian football pundits called for change in the line-up, Gustavsson named an unchanged team for the Matildas’ bronze medal match against Sweden, the team’s third game in the space of seven days.
It quickly became evident Gustavsson’s troops had very little left in the gas tank, with Gorry not even training on Friday to preserve her for the Sweden clash.
But when asked why he opted to continue with largely the same players throughout the campaign, Gustavsson pointed to a history of successful teams at big tournaments rarely making changes to their line-up and felt it was the best course of action.
“We had a clear strategy going into the tournament based on experience but also stats,” Gustavsson said in his post-match press conference.
“If you look at both men’s and women’s big tournaments and teams that won a lot of medals, continuity in starting line-ups and less rotations in rosters have been a success factor.
“We believe in relationships, the more time you spend together the better you play together.”
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