Cup of Nations - Ultimate Guide

The CommBank Matildas will face their first international opponents for 2023 at the Cup of Nations, taking on Czechia, Spain and Jamaica at home in February.

The four-team tournament will be taking place in Gosford, Sydney and Newcastle as the team begins the home stretch into the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

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Background

The three-match international window in February provided a rare opportunity to simulate the conditions that the CommBank Matildas will face in the group stage at the World Cup in July and August.

Head coach Tony Gustavsson said that the Cup of Nations is “about a rehearsal for the World Cup, in every aspect – what we do on the field, and in the stands.”

The three nations that the CommBank Matildas will be facing in the tournament differ in playing style and are at different stages in their journey, to replicate the challenges the CommBank Matildas will face in 6 months’ time.

Gustavsson emphasised that this is only one step in a larger preparation journey that has been ongoing since his appointment in 2020. However, for both fans and players, it is an incredibly exciting one.

While the squads are yet to be announced, Gustavsson said that fans can expect to see “high octane football” from the CommBank Matildas.


“We want to see an attacking-minded team - as always - that presses high, that attacks in numbers, and hopefully scores more goals than the opponent,” he said.

The Cup of Nations will build on a 2022 of mixed results for the CommBank Matildas, but one that ended in four straight victories – two of those against European opposition in Denmark and Sweden – a run that has proven an immense confidence booster for the side.

Opponents

Czechia

FIFA World Ranking: 28

Czechia represent the type of kryptonite that came to the fore for the CommBank Matildas during last year’s Asian Cup – an incredibly well-organised defence, sitting in a low block, that is difficult to break down.

2022 saw Czechia defeated against the likes of Iceland and Belarus, crushing their dreams of qualifying for their first ever Women’s World Cup. However – in the same calendar year - Czechia held both the defending world champions United States, and Euro winning England, to 0-0 draws.

In fact, the Czechs – alongside fellow Cup of Nations combatants, Spain – is the only team to keep England scoreless under their head coach Sarina Wiegman.

Czechia starting line-up, team photo during the Women's International Friendly match between England and Czechia at American Express Community Stadium on October 10, 2022, in Brighton, England. (Photo by David Horton - CameraSport via Getty Images)


It is undoubtedly their attack that gives head coach, the former Czechia national team defender Karel Rada, the most headaches. However, they have proven that they can keep the best teams in the world off the scoresheet over 90 minutes. There can be few better tests of Australia’s ability to think creatively in attacking areas than Czechia.

The CommBank Matildas will still need to be wary of the threat on the counterattack. 22-year-old Andrea Staskova has scored four of the last five goals for Czechia, and her success at a young age at club level with Juventus in Italy and now Atletico Madrid in Spain proves that she is a player to be wary of.

The scorer of the fifth goal in that period is Sam Kerr’s Chelsea teammate Katerina Svitkova. With 21 goals in 48 appearances for the national team, she is undoubtedly the nation’s best known and most creative outlet. The four-time Czech Women’s Footballer of the Year will be someone that the CommBank Matildas will have to keep a constant eye on.

The challenge of Czechia best replicates what the CommBank Matildas will be facing against the Republic of Ireland in the group stage of the World Cup. In their qualification playoff fixture, Scotland had 74% possession, 19 shots to 11, and missed a penalty – but that mattered little when Ireland were able to score against the run of play to win 1-0.

It is this kind of encounter that the creative players within the CommBank Matildas will relish finding solutions for.

Spain

FIFA World Ranking: 7

The FIFA World Ranking doesn’t tell anywhere near the full story of this Spanish side. Inspired by the feats of Barcelona - where many of their top players developed - they have in recent years almost revolutionised the way that women’s football is played, and demonstrated that success can be had with a possession-based passing game.

However, for all of their stylistic nous and obvious talent, this generation of Spanish players risks being unable to secure a trophy that would cement their legacy. From their point of view, the benefits of coming to Australia for the Cup of Nations is obvious – to familiarise themselves with Australian conditions in the hope of not only securing top place in this tournament, but to leave with a much bigger prize half a year later.

Their recent form shows the paradox of this team. They crashed out at the quarter-final stage of the Euros, falling in extra time to eventual champions England. Since then, they have secured some eye-catching results, including an astonishing 2-0 victory over the United States. Even more impressively, that result was achieved without 15 of their top players, after a row with head coach Jorge Vilda.

At this stage it is unclear whether Spain will travel to the Cup of Nations with all of their top players at their disposal. However, that result – backed up with a 7-0 victory over Argentina and a 1-0 win against Japan where they characteristically had 61% of possession – shows that the depth in Spanish football at present means that they are a distinct threat against anyone that they play.

Cortnee Vine: "We need redemption"


The task that the CommBank Matildas will face against Spain is what to do when having less possession than the opposition team. It will require an organised, cohesive defence and midfield that is able to latch on to turnovers in possession and create opportunities on the counter.

Inspiration can be drawn from the way that England approached the game at the Euros last year. In terms of playing style, parallels can certainly be drawn between the CommBank Matildas and England – if Gustavsson is able to get his team to react quickly in transition, there are enough threats up top to ask questions of Spain’s defence.

There is, however, no doubt of the game that will be front and centre in the minds of many players and coaching staff – that is, of course, the 7-0 defeat to Spain that the CommBank Matildas suffered last year. Forward Cortnee Vine said in an interview at the Cup of Nations announcement that the team needs “redemption” for that loss. If the team can put together a good result against Spain, it is further indication of the progress that the group has made since in the past 6 – 12 months.

Keen CommBank Matildas fans who followed the u20 Women’s World Cup last year will be familiar with the name Inma Gabarro. After dominating the u20s, she made her senior debut with Spain in November last year, scoring a goal off the bench against Argentina. If she is selected by Jorge Vilda for the Cup of Nations, keep an eye out for one of the most exciting young talents in the world on our doorstep.

Jamaica

FIFA World Ranking: 44

Jamaica is gearing up for their second ever Women’s World Cup, after finishing in third place at the CONCACAF W Championships in July last year.

It was an immense achievement by a young and relatively inexperienced side to qualify. Head coach Lorne Donaldson has emphasised that in press conferences – after a defeat against Canada during that qualifying tournament, he stated that they were a “growing team.” They were working so that, not too far in the future, they could reach the level of teams like the Olympic champions.

The Reggae Girlz playing style emphasises their biggest strength – pace up front, led by Manchester City forward Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw. This means that CommBank Matildas fans can expect a game defined by direct balls in behind the Australian defence that can be very challenging to deal with.

“If you look at their forwards, they can really hurt you on the break when we lose the ball,” CommBank Matildas head coach Tony Gustavsson said about Jamaica. “We need to train that and be good at that.”

Players of Jamaica pose prior to the third place match between Costa Rica and Jamaica as part of the 2022 Concacaf W Championship at BBVA Stadium on July 18, 2022 in Monterrey, Mexico. (Photo by Jaime Lopez/Jam Media/Getty Images)


In the past, Gustavsson has experimented with players such as Ellie Carpenter and Steph Catley in centre-back to try to counter teams that pose similar threats. Jamaica will be an altogether different challenge than Czechia and Spain, but one that is equally important to problem solve for the Australian coaching staff and team.

It is likely to be a similar style of play that the CommBank Matildas will face in the group stage against Nigeria. It will be vital that the players gain knowledge on how to counter direct and quick attacks in order to increase their chances of success at the World Cup.

For Jamaica’s part, they will be hoping that the tournament helps players adapt to conditions down under and provide experience from which they will hope to challenge France Brazil, and a play-off group winner to gain their first-ever points on the biggest stage in football.

While Shaw is Jamaica’s most well-known talent, goal-scoring threats will come from various angles. 21-year-old Kiki Van Zanten scored the goal in extra time that saw them overcome Costa Rica to finish third in the CONCACAF tournament. Their side also features former Chelsea and current Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Drew Spence and Crystal Palace attacker Paige Bailey-Gayle, as well as Tottenham goalkeeper Rebecca Spencer.

The CommBank Matildas played Jamaica in the group stage of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup. They were triumphant then, winning 4-1. The big challenge for Gustavsson’s team is finding ways to try to keep that clean sheet this time around.

See their squad for the tournament!

2023 CUP OF NATIONS – MATCH SCHEDULE

Match Day One
Date: Thursday, 16 February 2023
Venue: Industree Group Stadium, Gosford, NSW
Match One: Spain v Jamaica – 4.10 pm kick-off AEDT. Broadcast on Paramount+
Match Two: CommBank Matildas v Czechia – 7.10 pm kick-off AEDT. Broadcast on 10 Bold, 10 Play and Paramount+
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Match Day Two
Date: Sunday, 19 February 2023
Venue: CommBank Stadium, Sydney, NSW
Match One: Jamaica v Czechia – 2.50 pm AEDT. Broadcast on Paramount+
Match Two: CommBank Matildas v Spain – 6.00 pm AEDT. Broadcast on 10 Bold, 10 Play and Paramount+
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Match Day Three
Date: Wednesday, 22 February 2023
Venue: McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle, NSW
Match One: Czechia v Spain – 2.30 pm kick-off AEDT. Broadcast on Paramount+
Match Two: CommBank Matildas v Jamaica – 7.10 pm kick-off AEDT. Broadcast on 10 Bold, 10 Play and Paramount+
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