Australia urged to be brave against China in Asian Cup semi-final

Australia coach Joe Montemurro urged his team Monday to be brave in their Women’s Asian Cup semi-final against defending champions China, who are wary of the hosts’ attacking prowess.

The Matildas scraped into the last four after a 2-1 win over North Korea in which they were on the back foot for much of the game.

“We haven’t always been brave enough to control the ball, and as you all know, my way of thinking is with the ball,” said Montemurro ahead of the clash in Perth on Tuesday.

“So obviously the focus has been on that. We’re playing a team that is very, very well structured, very well organised.”

Australia received a boost with star players Steph Catley and Hayley Raso both declared fit after missing the quarter-final with concussion.

The semi-final will be extra special for Leicester City midfielder Emily van Egmond, who will become Australia’s most-capped player in her 170th game, surpassing Clare Polkinghorne.

Van Egmond has played at four World Cups, three Olympic Games and three Asian Cups, and said it was all about collective effort.

“We’ve worked hard to reach the semi-finals and it’s all about team performance,” said the 32-year-old, who Montemurro called “one of the best footballers that we’ve produced”.

Australia have the benefit of an extra day’s rest following their efforts against North Korea on Friday.

China played a day later and needed to toil through extra time to tame Taiwan 2-0 in a game that saw key striker Wang Shuang pick up a second yellow card.

She is suspended for the semis, but China have a coach who knows Australia very well.

Ante Milicic coached the Matildas at the 2019 World Cup, leading them to the round of 16, and always keeps close tabs on them.

“I always follow the Matildas from afar and track the players’ journey,” he said.

“Right now I’m enjoying my time with China, and leading them to the semi-finals is a dream for me and the staff.”

Milicic is particularly wary of the threat posed up front by Australia’s Sam Kerr, Raso and Caitlin Foord.

“These forward players of Australia can unlock any defence and have been performing at the top level for a long time,” he said.

“Defensively we have to be very strong.

“We not only have to contain Australia’s attacking threat, but we have also shown that we can attack and need to find the right balance.”

The winner will face either Japan or South Korea in Saturday’s final in Sydney.