Tony Gustavsson on matches against Canada being what CommBank Matildas wanted at Olympics

With the CommBank Matildas taking on Olympic Champions, Canada tomorrow at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, head coach Tony Gustavsson spoke to media about preparations for this match window and beyond.

With his move to Australia complete, Gustavsson was asked about settling into life down under.

"Well, first of all, I have to say it's, it feels fantastic to finally, officially and formally be in Australia and on home soil for a World Cup that's coming next year," he said.

"Secondly, it feels fantastic to be up here in Brisbane. We know we're going to play a game here and the World Cup as well, so to be able to get to know everything from the stadium, which is amazing, to the pitch which is fantastic as well, and the setup that we're going to have, is so important in terms of performances in training and preparing for the World Cup."

With Ellie Carpenter and Kyah Simon both out with injury, the announcement last week of injured winger Hayley Raso no longer coming into camp, plus Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Tameka Yallop, Mackenzie Arnold and Chloe Logarzo all being unavailable for selection, Gustavsson spoke adaptability and the positives of further testing the squad's depth.

READ: Sam Kerr and the extra buzz that home fans bring
MORE: Match Preview: CommBank Matildas v Canada (Brisbane)

"When it comes to the actual camp itself, as we've always said, being adaptable to change is a key attribute for us to be successful. And we've had to adjust a lot of changes this camp," he said.

"If we adapt to change, we can look at it as a chance for us to actually see the investment of the depth in the roster that we've been doing for a year and a half. This is a great opportunity to actually test that depth of the roster.

"We have seven starters from the Olympics unavailable for this camp, that's Ellie Carpenter, Hayley Raso, Steph Catley, Tameka Yallop, Chloe Logarzo, Caitlin Foord and Kyah Simon," he continued.

"There's also a question mark on Cortnee Vine. We played it safe today [in training] and did what she needs to do to be available, then we're going to test her tomorrow to see if she's available off the bench or not.

"Tomorrow's game is obviously going to be a different type of game and a different type of approach than what we thought going into this camp, but we love challenges, and we need to adapt and also test to see the investment in the depth of the roster and where we sit."

Gustavsson said that coming up against the Olympic Champions will prove a great test for the CommBank Matildas as they continue their preparations for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.

"Canada have been one of the best defensive teams in the world for almost two years now, in terms of how many goals they've conceded, which is a very few," he explained.

"They work extremely hard as a unit, they won the Olympics by being a very solid defensive team and are really good on the brakes, their transition game is world-class. Even if they're missing some players, it's mostly in the backline. They have a front line and a midfield line that is world-class.

"We felt that we should have been there in the final against Canada at the Olympics," he continued. "We played a really good semifinal against Sweden, we were disappointed that we came home empty-handed, but now we get a chance to play the game against Canada that we wanted to play in Tokyo. That's how we look at it, so we're extremely motivated to test ourselves against this team."

Canada head coach, Bev Priestman also spoke to the CANWNT looking to test themselves against the CommBank Matildas, during Canada's pre-match press conference.

"Australia are a top team," Priestman said." Scouting them coming into this, they've got major threats. You can't hide from Sam Kerr, but it's not just about Sam Kerr, there are four or five top players who are playing in top leagues and clubs, so it'll be a really tough game for us defensively.

"We'll have to be really armed for an Australian side that have proven they can score goals, but we've also identified some areas we feel we can hurt them," she continued.

"Australia will be right up in amongst World Cup contenders and I look at the opportunities playing against them with the ball. They're very good defensively, they're quick, they're athletic and they'll be a great test for us.

"You always want to test yourself against top sides. And I do think Australia are right up there."

Looking to the future, Gustavsson was asked if he believed his team could win the World Cup.

"What we've said all along is that we need to control the controllables and the controllables are to work on investment in developing this team to try to make sure every individual and we as a team reach our full potential," he said.

"The one thing that we want to make sure of is that every time we step onto that park, we inspire, we leave our heart out there and give it our all, so that everyone who buys a ticket and comes to watch 90 minutes of football, now, or at the World Cup, should know what product they're going to watch.

"They're going to watch a team that's going to leave it all out there, we're going to be very aggressive, we're going to be very attacking minded. Some people say we need to concede less goals, we say we need to score more than the opponents because that's what this team is about. And then we'll see come the World Cup, how far that can take us and it's up to other people outside of our circle to judge whether we've taken it far enough or not."

CommBank Matildas v Canada 
Date: Saturday, 3 September 2022 
Venue: Suncorp Stadium 
Kick-Off: 2:45pm AEST 
Broadcast: Live and free on Network 10 and simulcast on 10 Play and Paramount+.  
Tickets available now

CommBank Matildas v Canada 
Date: Tuesday, 6 September 2022 
Venue: Allianz Stadium 
Kick-Off: 7.40pm AEST 
Broadcast: Live and free on Network 10 and simulcast on 10 Play and Paramount+.  
Tickets available now