Newly appointed CommBank Matildas Head Coach Joe Montemurro said that the team under his tenure would play a proactive and entertaining style of football that he has become known for.
He was speaking to Football Australia Media after his appointment about his pride in securing the role, and the way that he hoped to implement his footballing philosophies.
“Football-wise, I suppose I'm probably a little bit stubborn,” he said.
“We want to have the ball more than the other team. We want to be able to control the situation, even without the ball. But more importantly, a team that's going to excite and be proactive and hopefully entertain.”
The Australian said that his appointment was still yet to fully sink in.
“It's probably really difficult to put it in words,” he expressed.
“It’s just an amazing feeling and an amazing opportunity. All the words like pride and honour – they’re normal, but it's a little bit more than that.”
Montemurro has coached clubs such as Arsenal, Juventus and Lyon to league titles. He explained how he approaches coaching on and off the pitch.
“I've always approached my football and myself as a person, as one with a sense of humility, a sense of selflessness, and honesty,” he said.
“I've always been honest, or tried to be as honest as possible, in a leadership role.”
For his first squad, he will draw upon deep knowledge of Australian football both at home and abroad.
“I’ve obviously worked with a handful of the players, whether it's overseas or locally, which is already an important part,” he said.
“I watch a lot of the A-League overseas, so I've got a pretty good handle on the development and also what's happening in the A-League, which I feel is important.
“But look, one of the big things we want to do is meet up with the players and put in some individual plans for them. We’re talking the extended squad.
“It’s important, because it's going to work hand in hand with the identity and the way we want to play, and the game model that the players understand through that profiling of what their expectations are - physically, tactically and obviously mentally.”
He expressed that his first and foremost goal was putting together a squad that can win the AFC Asian Cup 2026™.
“The reality is that we need to stabilise a team that's going to be prepared for the Asian Cup, that's going to be ready to take on this important tournament, and go all the way,” he said.
“That’s the first and foremost scenario. But that doesn't mean that development and reintroducing the next generation isn't going to be happening while we're still trying to prepare a team.”
Finally, he spoke about the growth of the CommBank Matildas in recent years and how much of a privilege it was to take the reins of the team supported by such fantastic fans.
“It’s a special brand for many reasons,” he said.
“The players over the years have created amazing role models. They've created an aura of a high performance team, that will always represent what it means to be Australian in every game that it plays.
“That’s touched the fan base, it’s kept a special sort of feeling within the fan base. When you become a Matildas fan, you really see that you are a Matildas fan, and that's something special. It's something really, really special.
“The growth of the game has been amazing. I witnessed it at the World Cup in 2023, the amount of interest in the game. That interest has been turned into fans and supporters of the women's game and the Matildas.”
COMMBANK MATILDAS | WA SERIES ONE | MATCH SCHEDULE
CommBank Matildas v Slovenia
Date: Thursday, 26 June 2025
Kick-off: 7.00pm WST / 9.00pm AEST
Venue: HBF Park, Perth
TV Broadcast: Network 10, 10 Play and Paramount+
Radio Broadcast: ABC Listen App
Tickets: Buy Tickets
CommBank Matildas v Slovenia
Date: Sunday, 29 June 2025
Kick-off: 6.00pm WST / 8.00pm AEST
Venue: HBF Park, Perth
TV Broadcast: Paramount+ exclusive
Radio Broadcast: ABC Listen App
Tickets: Buy Tickets
