Two-time champion coach says Matildas can win the 2023 Women’s World Cup: you have all the ingredients to go for it’

Australia’s Matildas are gearing up to make history tomorrow in the Women’s World Cup quarter-final against France, but a coach who has done it all before believes they can go even deeper into the tournament.

The Matildas have never progressed past the quarter-finals of a World Cup, but have a golden opportunity to reach their first semi-final on home soil.

They will play against France at Brisbane Stadium at 5pm on Saturday, with the winner advancing to the semi-finals.

Former US boss Jill Ellis is one of the most decorated coaches in women’s soccer and she believes the Aussies will not only prevail against France, but they will win everything.

Ellis won back-to-back Women’s World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019 with the American women and knows what it takes to reach that level.

She believes the Matildas have what it takes.

“You have all the ingredients to go all out,” she said ABC Sports.

Ellis has seen what it takes to win a World Cup and she believes the Matildas have it in spades

Under Ellis, the US won back-to-back World Cup trophies in 2015 and 2019 in a golden era for the nation

“I see a galvanized team. I see a team in which people have had to leave. You don’t win a World Cup with one player, you win a World Cup with 23 players, Ellis continued.

“That adaptability, that willingness to do whatever it takes, is a key ingredient to finding a way to win. You’ve seen determination come back after a beating by Nigeria, to dig in, reset, refocus and beat Canada and Denmark.

“All the elements are there to trust this team to manage the moment. And besides, you have to have the talent. They are defensively solid. And with (Sam) Kerr coming back, (Caitlin) Foord has been incredible, (Hayley) Raso has been fired up: you’ve got it all.

And then you have 75,000 green and gold people in the stands cheering behind you. That’s an incredible motivator. So I think they have a good chance.’

Another reason Ellis has faith in the Matildas is head coach Tony Gustavsson.

Gustavsson worked as an assistant under Ellis at Team USA and she saw he had what it takes during that tenure.

“I knew when Tony came here the team was at a crossroads where it needed new players, it had to evolve and innovate,” said Ellis.

“You needed someone who was going to work incredibly hard and smart, but also take this team on a journey. And I see that with Tony and what he’s done.

“We received huge criticism. Fans and media expected so much from this American team, so any slight deviation was like the sky falling down.

“But there you collect internally and block it. I was often asked ‘Are you afraid of losing your job?’ and I would always answer: I don’t coach to keep my job, I coach what I believe, and I believe this team has to go through this evolution.

Jill Ellis and current Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson both worked with the United States women’s soccer team

France will be a formidable opponent for the Matildas in their quarter-final, although Australia managed to beat the French in a friendly in the run-up to the tournament.

Two weeks ago, Gustavsson was fighting for his job.

The Matildas had lost Sam Kerr to injury and were heavily questioned after Nigeria’s group stage loss with the knives coming out for the Aussie coach.

However, the Matildas have since turned that around with emphatic wins over Canada and Denmark to salvage their tournament.

“You have to believe in the process,” Ellis said.

“As a coach, when you start showing progress – whether it’s data, whether it’s performance, whether it’s new players – you can see the progress, but people on the outside sometimes can’t. That’s where I think resilience is critical.

‘Tony thinks along very well when it comes to drawing up a plan. This was not a ‘let’s see how this unfolds’ kind of tournament. Everything had a purpose: the teams he played, the trips he made, the matches, the players he used. There was always a greater purpose.

“I think this is a team that once you start to see it fall into place, you know it’s part of the bigger picture.”