It has been a massive month in Australian football, as the country alongside New Zealand has hosted the largest Women's World Cup in history.
The eyes of the footballing world have been on the country, and they have performed to expectations, reaching the semifinals for the first time ever and capturing the hearts of the nation.
There is now huge excitement ahead of their match against England, and coach Tony Gustavsson has been praised for the work he has done to get them this far
The Sporting News looks at his career and time with the Matildas, and whether his tenure can be deemed a success.
MORE: Australia vs England live blog
Previous Matildas coaches
Before Tony Gustavsson took charge in 2020, the two most recent coaches were Alen Stajcic and then Ante Milicic.
Stajcic took over in 2014 and at the 2015 World Cup was the first coach to help an Australian national side — both men and women — to a knockout stage victory at a World Cup when his side defeated Brazil 1-0 in the round of 16; they would later be knocked out in the quarterfinals by Japan.
They also qualified for the Olympics for the first time, and reached their highest FIFA World Rankings (4). However, he was sacked in controversial circumstances on the eve of the 2019 World Cup, with then Football Federation Australia (FFA) CEO David Gallop stating was the result of an internal review and confidential surveys with players. It was a call that was roundly criticised, including by Sam Kerr, and FFA board member Heather Reid was forced to make a "unreserved apology" to Stajcic.
I have not been gagged by the FFA. I have not commented because I wasn’t ready to comment while I am still shocked and upset. My trust was in Staj to lead us to the World Cup final & I believe he was the best coach for that. Thankful for everything his done for me and the team.
— Sam Kerr (@samkerr1) January 20, 2019
Former Socceroos assistant coach Ante Milicic took over for the 2019 World Cup, where Australia qualified for the knockout stages despite suffering a surprise defeat to Italy in the group stages; they were eliminated in the round of 16 by Norway on penalties. Milicic left the Matildas in 2020 to take up a role at A-League Men's side Macarthur FC.
Tony Gustavsson career
After a playing career spent mostly in Sweden, Gustavsson was coach at multiple clubs in Sweden, including top division side Hammarby IF, where he was sacked after the team were relegated in 2009.
He was introduced to women's football by becoming assistant coach of the United States national team in 2012 under Pia Sundhage. This led to a role at Swedish women's side Tyreso FF, where he won the league title in 2012 on the final day and also led the team to the 2014 Champions League Final, where the team was defeated by powerhouse Wolfsburg.
The club went bankrupt that year, leading to Gustavsson returning to his old position as assistant coach of the USA national team, this time under Jill Ellis.
Unlike his previously short tenure, he stayed in the role for five years, being part of two World Cup winning sides in 2015 and 2019, though the side finished a disappointing 5th at the 2016 Olympics.
Tony Gustavsson Matildas coach record
Tony Gustavsson's tenure got off to a rocky start with a 5-2 loss away to Germany in January 2021, with his first win not arriving till the group stages of the 2020 Olympics against New Zealand.
He was able to lead the Matildas to the bronze medal match thanks to defeating Great Britain in the quarterfinals, though the USA defeated them in that match 4-3.
The side continued to struggle despite an abundance of talent; losses to the Republic of Ireland and the USA were followed by an embarrassing elimination in the quarterfinals of the AFC Women's Asian Cup by South Korea — which would have seen them miss out on the World Cup had they not already qualified as hosts — and an experimental side was demolished 7-0 away from home against Spain. Gustavsson was heavily criticised for the lineup selected for the latter match.
Gustavsson defended both his choice of a rotated lineup and his choice of selecting strong opponents, stating it was needed to build depth for the coming World Cup, and he has been vindicated to an extent with the side having a strong back end of 2022 and a great start to 2023.
They defeated Sweden 4-0 in Melbourne, were able to exact revenge on Spain at the cup of Nations thanks to a 3-2 victory, and they recorded arguably their biggest scalp by shocking Euro 2022 winners England on a rainy London evening with a 2-0 success.
A cold rainy night in Brentford?
— CommBank Matildas (@TheMatildas) April 11, 2023
Completed it, mate. 🙌#WeAreMatildas #ENGvAUS pic.twitter.com/RQJr5CHKqX
Tony Gustavsson Matildas coach stats
Of the 35 games that Gustavsson has overseen before the World Cup, the Matildas have an overall record of 16 wins, 5 draws and 14 losses.
It is telling of the contrasting nature of Gustavsson's tenure that eight of those wins have come in the last nine matches since October last year.
In that time they have scored 79 goals and conceded 57, which leaves an imposing looking +22 goal difference, though an 18-0 win over Indonesia in the Asian Cup skews the figure dramatically.
That said their numbers in their hot run of form have been impressive, their previously maligned defence has only conceded six goals in the 12 games since the Spain debacle, whilst also being able to score 27 times.
Expectations at World Cup for Matildas and Gustavsson
Already sky high expectations on Gustavsson and the Matildas have increased after the positive run of form that the team has seen of late.
The Matildas have previously never made it past the quarterfinal stages of the tournament, and their win over Brazil in 2015 represented their only win at the knockout stage of the tournament.
They reached the bare minimum by reaching the quarterfinals when they defeated Denmark in the Round of 16.
After two matches in the group stages, though, it wasn't looking like the Matildas would make it that far as they suffered a shock defeat to Nigeria that left them third in the group; in the match, Gustavsson was widely criticised for his tactical selections and lack of substitutions until there was less than 10 minutes left in the game despite the side being 3-1 down.