Time for Gustavsson to put up or shut up as Matildas take on Denmark

With so many still unconvinced that Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson is the man to lead the team in a successful World Cup campaign on home shores next year, Wednesday morning’s friendly fixture with Denmark is crucial.

Should the Swede hope to continue to receive the support of Football Australia as the tournament draws ever nearer, he had best manufacture a winning – or at least impressive – performance against the Danes.

Saturday night’s win against South Africa was one featuring an asterisk or two, namely a few blunders in goal from the South African keeper and a fair amount of top-level talent unavailable for the Australians’ opposition. The Matildas were by far the better side, deserved the win and did what they needed to do against weaker opposition.

Charlotte Grant was very impressive at right back, Steph Catley was superb in her return to the team and despite neither being goals to write home about, it was pleasing to see Cortnee Vine score the brace that kicked off her international goal tally.

(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

It was a decent performance and a much-needed win, albeit against a team ranked 54th in the world and not presenting as the best version of themselves.

Wednesday morning’s fixture at the Viborg Stadium in Denmark will be a completely different kettle of fish.

Assuming the Danes roll out something near their best 11, the Matildas will most likely be involved in a like-for-like battle that will tell us a great deal about exactly where they are at heading into the summer.

With two further fixtures lined up in November against Sweden and Thailand in Australia, it is likely that by the completion of those matches we will have all formed a fully developed opinion on Gustavsson and his squad, based on the sufficient evidence available.

Losses in all three matches would most likely be the death knell for the Swede, three wins would appear as something of a miracle after such a disappointing recent period, and mixed results might see the jury remain out and the headaches continue for the folks in charge at headquarters.

In the recent Women’s Euro tournament, Denmark drew a tricky group from Pot C and lost narrowly to Spain, were thrashed by Germany and beat Finland by a single goal. It was not enough to advance to the knock-out phase, yet aside from the Germany result where the team was simply outclassed, they were more than competitive.

The Danes conceded in the 90th minute to Spain, a team destined to bow out in the quarter-finals in extra-time to eventual champions England.

That is decent form in anyone’s language and for the Matildas, a little concerning considering the 7-0 hammering they took at the hands of the Spanish back in June.

With Denmark entering the Euros at 15th in the FIFA rankings and now having slipped to 17th, this fixture could well be something of an acid test for Gustavsson’s team.

With the Matildas occupying a somewhat generous 12th in the FIFA rankings, the clash is one where both sides will be extremely interested in gauging each other’s form. However, Gustavsson will enter the game as the most nervous participant of all, knowing that a repeat of the June 2021 loss to the Danes simply cannot occur.

(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

On that day, goals to Clare Polkinghorne and Mary Fowler in the dying minutes added some respectability to the scoreline and brought the coach out of his seat, gesticulating as chaotically as ever. Yet Denmark had established a three-goal lead by the 25th minute.

It was business as usual for the Matildas, with a Sam Kerr or bust strategy stifling their attack and a 62 per cent share of possession wasted endlessly, without the purposeful passing required to convert time on the ball into meaningful numbers on the score sheet.

It was around the same time that deep concerns in regards to the level at which the team were playing and whether Gustavsson had made any improvement or begun developing the next generation surfaced.

Since then, the Matildas have done little of note, winning against teams one would expect them to and losing to nations that appear to be passing or have passed them on the football freeway, such as Canada, Brazil, Republic of Ireland, Germany, Japan, Spain and the United States.

If the last 18 months have taught fans of the Matildas anything, it is that the team has slipped in terms of world performance. The Denmark fixture and the November match-ups with third-ranked Sweden and 41st-ranked Thailand may well add the final chapter to the tale, ending Gustavsson’s reign and giving his successor time to change course before the World Cup.

Yet if the coach van finally produce the substance behind the ‘process’ to which he often refers, one would expect the Matildas to beat Denmark, challenge Sweden and conquer the Thais.

Frankly, I cannot see that happening and feel we may be about to see the final days of the Gustavsson era.