Women's World Cup draw hands Matildas three tricky fixtures

It’s fast becoming one of life’s guarantees. Death, taxes, and the cosmos finding a way to pair the Matildas and Seleção at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Reflecting on this morning’s World Cup 2019 draw in Paris, Matildas coach Alen Stajcic was phlegmatic, remarking that, “we’ve played Brazil that many times in the last three or four years that they’re not an unknown at all.”

The two sides have met at each of the last three world cups (the last 16 in 2015, the group stages in 2011, the quarter finals in 2007) and in the quarter finals at the Rio 2016 Olympics, as well as in the invitation-only Tournament of Nations.

With three wins in their last four games against the South Americans – the most recent being a Sam Kerr-inspired 3-1 dismantling at the Tournament of Nations back in July (and the most famous a 6-1 demolition in the corresponding edition in 2017) – as remarkable as it sounds, there could be a sense of relief that Brazil was the pot two team drawn alongside the Matildas; given 2017 Euro champions the Netherlands were another possibility.

However, it’s worth remembering that this World Cup represents perhaps the final chance for an iconic Brazilian cohort to have a tilt at football’s ultimate prize. The return of Cristiane to the ranks earlier this year, after retiring in 2017 in protest at the Brazilian FA’s treatment of the team and the resignation of coach Emily Lima, and of course the presence of Marta, voted FIFA’s 2018 player of the year, make Brazil a very experienced proposition.

While the 13 June game in Montpellier will capture the headlines and surely sit at or near the top of any list of match-ups to watch out for, the Matildas’ other Group C opponents in Italy (making their first appearance at a World Cup since 1999), and Jamaica (making their first ever World Cup appearance) offer a different set of challenges.

The Matildas open their World Cup on 9 June against the 16th ranked Italians, playing in their first world cup since 1999. In recent years the professional scene in Italy has flourished, with Juventus, Roma and Fiorentina among the men’s Serie A clubs to sink significant investment and effort into developing women’s teams, which sees talismanic national team players, such as forward Cristiana Girelli (who registers a goal every other game for Italy), plying her trade for Juventus.

The Azzure’s rise parallels this in a manner reminiscent of the success of the Matildas in tandem with the W-League’s growth, qualifying for France having won all but one of their qualifying matches. With head to head results reasonably even – in eight meetings, each side has won three, and the other two matches resulting in draws – the characteristically organised Italian side is not a simple proposition.

Meanwhile the world-ranked 53rd side, the Reggae Girlz, against whom the Matildas conclude pool play in Grenoble on 18 June, present something of a different challenge: that of the unknown.

“Jamaica’s probably the hardest team, because they’ve only really started playing again at a high level recently,” notes Stajcic.

Disbanded in 2010 and then re-established in 2014 with support from Cedella Marley, daughter of Bob, Jamaica became the first Caribbean team to ever qualify for a women’s World Cup, knocking ever-presents Mexico out of contention in the process. The team placed third in CONMEBOL qualifiers, with 16-year-old forward Jody Brown winning the tournament’s best young player award. Taking the Reggae Girlz lightly on the basis of their recent return to the international fold would therefore be foolish.

The Matildas’ November loss to Chile, a team deemed “inactive” by FIFA in 2016 due to a lack of games (and consequently falling out of the rankings altogether for a spell), serves as a reminder of how quickly fortunes shift in the game – and how much can be achieved in a relatively short space of time. Accordingly, Stajcic is under no illusions at the level of care needed to best prepare his side over the next six months if they are to perform to their potential and make their mark on this tournament.

“It’s been a tough year in terms of coming to grips with the loads of the players, the amount of travel they’ve had to do, the amount of injuries we’ve had in the team, there’s been a lot of variables that have affected the fluency and the rhythm of our teams.”

The majority of the Matildas roster are now immersed in the W-League’s 11th season, many off the back of a full NWSL campaign. With Stajcic spending a few days in France to survey the facilities there can be no doubt that, now the identities of their first three tournament opponents are revealed, the Matildas’ preparations have begun in earnest.