Poletti 
The Matildas training in Houston ahead of their opening SheBelieves Cup game against Japan. Photo by Rachel Bach/Football Australia.
Australia suffered a comprehensive defeat at the hands on Japan to open the SheBelieves Cup on Friday morning, suffering a 4-0 defeat at the hands of its AFC compatriots.
The Matildas were behind the eight-ball from the start, conceding in the sixth minute after a defensive mishap, before goals in the 32nd, 52nd, and 75th minutes sealed the result for Japan.
Interim coach Tom Sermanni described Japan as outstanding after the contest, noting that the Matildas failed to get close in any aspect of the game.
“Sometimes you have to sit back and say ‘you know what, we were just played off the field today,’ and that’s what we were,” Sermanni said.
“They were quicker to every ball, they kept possession fantastically. When we tried to press, they broke out of the press. When we sat back, they managed to play through us.
“Sometimes you have one of those games, and I’d like to be able to sit here and give you x,y,z as to why it happened, but the reality is they were very, very good today, and we were a bit off.”
The story of the game presents a worrying outlook for Australia ahead of hosting the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in 2026, where Japan will be one of the favourites.
Japan, who already have a new coach in Nils Nielsen, along with assistant Leah Blayney, who departed her role as head coach of the Young Matildas to take the job, showcased why they are a class ahead of Australia in Nielsen’s first game in charge.
After strong campaigns at the 2023 Women’s World Cup and the Paris Olympics, it looked like Japan had ascended to new heights under Nielsen, although a lot of that could come down to how poor Australia were in this game.
Mackenzie Arnold and Alanna Kennedy, both of whom are in pre-season, looked every bit of two players who have not played competitive football for some time on the first goal, whereas Japan looked like a well-oiled machine.
Whilst Sermanni will likely not be in charge for the Asian Cup campaign, the signs from Australia are concerning regardless of who steps in given this was a near full-strength starting side.
Real questions and conversations need to be had about the future of some players in the squad if this is the sort of performance that will be turned out against quality opposition, but in the immediate future however, the juggernaut of the USA awaits on Monday morning (AEDT), and Sermanni and company will not be able to dwell on this result for too long.
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