Ante Milicic says the challenge of two intense games in quick succession against Chile next month will be perfect preparation for the Westfield Matildas ahead of next year’s Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualifiers.
Milicic named a 21-player squad on Tuesday for the two-game friendly series against Chile in Sydney (Saturday, November 9) and Adelaide (Tuesday, November 12).
The squad features 18 players that were involved in Australia’s most recent tournament at June’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, as well as new faces Jenna McCormick, Emma Checker and Sarah Willacy.
With the countdown on towards February’s first phase of qualifying for next year’s Olympic Games, Milicic knows the journey for his squad starts now.
“We’ll really benefit from the time we have in camp and it’s our first international since the World Cup. It’s been a long time and it will be good to get the full squad together,” the Westfield Matildas boss told reporters.
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“It’s two games, the travel, just being around the environment and preparing for what’s a really busy period and important period for us in January.
“I’m really looking forward to getting the full group together in this camp.”
Milicic continued: “You have to understand I also have one eye on the qualifiers and the future as well.
“In the back of my mind what really has me thinking is if we are to qualify for the Olympics, it’s 18 player [squads], that’s 5 less than the World Cup [23-player squads] so I really thought about that and that’s also influenced my decision in this squad.”
Veteran Westfield Matildas striker Lisa De Vanna was one of the FIFA Women’s World Cup contingent to miss this squad, but Milicic said the Fiorentina attacker is still very much in his plans.
"Lisa’s in the extended list that I will continue to monitor," Milicic said.
"I know fully what she offers the team on and off the park. For this window I decided to leave her out and bring in other players and have a look at it…to see as many players as possible."
One of those players is uncapped Adelaide United goalkeeper Sarah Willacy, who has been called into the squad alongside experienced shot-stoppers Lydia Williams and Makenzie Arnold.
“I thought this was an opportunity to bring Willacy into camp for the reason being I have seen a couple of other keepers as well,” Milicic explained.
“She’s a young goalkeeper, she’s got a very good vertical jump and we want to expose as many as we can to the environment.”
The two Chile friendlies are key warm-up games for Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualifying.
The first match is at Bankwest Stadium in Parramatta on November 9, and then again on November 12 at Coopers Stadium in Adelaide.
But the focus will soon shift to February’s qualifying tournament in China, where the Westfield Matildas take on the host-nation, Chinese Taipei and Thailand.
The top-two teams from the group will progress to the final qualifying round, with China likely to pose the biggest challenge to the Westfield Matildas.
“Their [China] results were very impressive in the World Cup. They were eliminated to Italy in a game where they had more possession and more shots,” Milicic explained.
“They really are an emerging nation that has invested a lot in their football. I was also impressed with their physical capabilities. They were one of the strongest teams in that department at the World Cup.
“We know we are going to have a very difficult match but at the same time we have the opportunity to prepare well ourselves and we are looking forward to going to China.”
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