Aaron D’Antino knows Caitlin Foord and Steph Catley better than most as the assistant coach of Arsenal. The Australian offers an insight into two Matildas stars helping to spearhead the country’s World Cup campaign, writes Sacha Pisani.
All eyes are on superstar Matildas captain Sam Kerr heading into the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but there is another Australian who teams need to be focusing on.
Twelve years on from her debut as a 16-year-old full-back, Caitlin Foord will feature at a fourth World Cup and she is primed to make the 2023 showpiece her own as she emerges from Kerr’s shadow.
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The A-Leagues graduate is coming off one of the most productive seasons of her career, scoring 12 goals across all competitions for Women’s Super League powerhouse Arsenal in 2022-23.
D’Antino spoke to KEEPUP ahead of the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where the Matildas will face the Republic of Ireland, Nigeria and Canada in Group B.
“I think she hit the ground running for us. I’m talking her original entry into the WSL,” D’Antino – who previously worked with Melbourne Victory’s youth and senior teams – told KEEPUP. “Particularly if you look at her in comparison to Sam Kerr. I think it took Sam a little bit to get going.
“I think it shows Caitlin’s consistency over the past couple of seasons. She has just gone from strength to strength. Understanding her strengths as a player and really wanting to, selfishly, bring the best out of herself more often than not. It’s been a really big part of her growth.
“She has that Aussie mindset in terms of wanting to work incredibly hard for the team and she will do whatever the team needs. But it’s also going, well you’re one of the best players on the pitch, why can’t we use you as a threat more often than not?
“Instead of people potentially talking about Sam Kerr being the problem for Australia, why wouldn’t it be Caitlin Foord is actually the one we need to focus on?”
Foord – who was crowned the AFC Women’s Footballer of the Year in 2016 – scored six goals for Arsenal in the WSL last season.
She also scored four goals during the club’s run to the UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-finals, having also found the back of the net en route to Arsenal winning the League Cup against Kerr’s Chelsea.
D’Antino continued: “She is just phenomenal. She is incredibly reliable on the ball.
“The amount of times, we as coaches looking at it going ‘retain the ball, protect it’ and then she ends up turning and rolling someone. You’re looking going, ‘where did that even come from?’.
“Once she gets going and she is facing goal… everyone knows she loves to cut in from the left onto her right foot. Being able to get the best out of her, that’s going to be an interesting part.
“Obviously Australia are tinkering with how they play her. Playing her more central sometimes as opposed to out wide. That just opens up a whole new world with how you defend Caitlin Foord.
“And if you have Steph (Catley) supplying her. That’s a huge part for us in terms of their partnership. That goes years beyond us. It’s almost telepathic, they know what they need from each other before it even happens.
“It will be really interesting to see how the Matildas use her. It will be similar to (Arsenal star and Ireland captain) Katie McCabe. They will chop and change her position to get the absolute best out of her, particularly when you talk about playing off Sam Kerr.
“You know Sam Kerr will pull the best defenders and all of a sudden you have Foordy running beyond or coming to feet. Good luck trying to stop them.”
‘One of the best defenders in the world’
D’Antino mentioned the “telepathic” understanding between Foord and teammate Steph Catley.
Catley is the other Arsenal star in the Matildas’ World Cup squad and just like Foord, the experienced defender signed a contract extension with the 2018-19 WSL champions in the off-season.
Both Catley and Foord were lured to Arsenal by Liberty A-League-winning head coach Montemurro three years ago, and Catley has flourished in the London environment.
“I have to say Steph is one of the most intelligent footballers I’ve ever worked with and equally technically proficient,” said D’Antino. “So reliable with the ball but that’s because of her understanding of the game.
“No matter where you put her on the pitch, you almost know you’re going to get a 9.5/10 performance from her every time she plays.
“We’ve been trying to work with her to try to be more of an attacking threat. That’s not necessarily about her joining the attack, it’s also the areas she’s putting the ball into the box because she has such a high-level quality of cross and a damaging left foot.
“Her experience, her versatility and her ability to just defend… it makes her one of the best defenders in the world.
“All of that being said, then there’s the leadership part in terms of her being able to support players around her. She is a positive-mindset person. Nothing is ever too small to do. Constantly trying to find solutions and go out and try it. She is brave enough to do that.
“She will be one of the best players at the tournament for sure.”
‘A dark horse to win the tournament’
The Matildas have never progressed beyond the quarter-finals of a World Cup, but as co-hosts, there are high hopes.
Those hopes and expectations have grown following Australia’s shock 2-0 win over European champions England in April – a result that snapped the Lionesses’ 30-match unbeaten streak.
With D’Antino’s role at Arsenal, he has been able to watch a host of WSL and England-based stars on a regular basis and he feels the Matildas have all the ingredients to achieve something memorable Down Under.
“They’re one of the host nations, so there will be massive expectations but then when you go and look at some of the European teams, I think everyone will be talking about a lot of European nations to be favourites. And that’s outside of the USA and Canada, and Brazil,” he said.
“When I look at all that, I then go well I think the Matildas are a dark horse to win the tournament.
“Tony (Gustavsson) has done a great job in building more depth into the squad and giving a lot of young players some experience.
“If you look at the quality they have, the experience they have… previously where they may’ve struggled is you were probably relying on the same players for almost too long going deeper into tournaments.
“All of a sudden now they have got some really good depth or some players who have picked up some invaluable experience over the past two years. Hopefully they can come in and be really strong game-changers and impact players to alleviate some of the pressure on the experienced players.
“In saying all of that, you need to be in a position where you’re performing well and you feel like you have the ability to rotate.
“You absolutely have the culture and everything you need to win a major tournament. You know they will give absolutely they have.
“Then you have the support of a home nation. Being here for the Euros last year and watching England’s journey to the final – you can’t put a price on home support and what that does for you, particularly late in tournaments.
“The big thing is them getting off to a good start. It’s probably the biggest sporting event outside of the Sydney Olympics, so naturally that has to play its part as the weight on you as a nation. The sooner they can manage that, get themselves into a flow within the tournament.
“If you have that depth coming in, I think the sky is the limit.”
“I was reading Sam Kerr’s quotes about her not caring about being isolated for 90 minutes, she only needs one chance and she is right,” he added.
“When you really look at all the strikers, and don’t get me wrong there’s some absolute world-class talents across the tournament, she is arguably the best and most potent that could be inside the box for you. It only needs one moment and one goal.
“The Matildas definitely have one of the best players in the world to do that.”
