Sermanni pleased with win over Taiwan but faces reshuffle for Saturday re-match.

Though clear-cut chances were tough to come by, interim Matildas boss Tom Sermanni was generally pleased with how his side performed in downing Taiwan 3-1 on Wednesday evening but now faces selection conundrums heading into Saturday’s re-match in Geelong.

Taking the lead thanks to Tash Prior and Sharn Frier in the tenth and twelfth minutes, Australia’s women had initially looked like they would cruise to victory over their lesser heralded opponents at AAMI Park on Wednesday, only for the goals to dry up and their lead to be halved after 34 minutes by Chen Jin-wen.

Despite handily controlling possession and regularly working the ball into the final third — as one would expect given the gulf in pedigree between the two sides — it would ultimately take until the 78th minute for the hosts to find their third goal through Bryleeh Henry; all three of the side’s goalscorers netting their first at international level.

“I was pleased with how we played in general,” said Sermanni. “I think we've probably made life a little bit more difficult for ourselves when we gave the goal away because I think up until then, we didn't have any threat [to defend] and that sort of interrupted our rhythm for a little bit.

“The third goal and the introduction of the subs gave us a new energy again. And I think we saw the game out very well, and it was a good, solid win.

“The Asian teams are very, very good and very disciplined when they defend in that block. So I was delighted by getting the two early goals because that sort of took the pressure off. And I think had we not conceded that goal we would have won a lot more comfortably.

“As a coach, you would like to create more when they do that, but then you've also got to be pragmatic and practical. We've had one training session... with a significantly different group of players, and then you throw them on the field with a little bit of guidance, and you hope that things all come together. So you've got to look at the game in that way as well.

“Overall, it was challenging to create chances. But that's that's not unexpected.”

With the challenges of facing off with Taiwan very different from those associated with playing Brazil, who defeated the Matildas in two friendlies in Queensland across the past week, and nine players returning to their clubs after that series, Sermanni deployed a new system on Wednesday evening.

Though initial analysis of the teamsheet suggested a 4-4-2 formation, the interim boss instead retained a back five, with fullbacks Tameka Yallop and Sharn Frier pushing high as three midfielders sitting behind two recognised strikers in Michelle Heyman and Emily Gielnik – the latter of whom hit the woodwork before Frier’s goal and should have scored in the 58th minute after being played through by the latter.

And though the decision to shift Charli Grant inside to centreback – not that she stayed there much in possession – may have backfired when she was caught out taking a bad pursuit angle on Taiwan’s goal and chances proved gilt-edged chances proved tough to come by, Sermanni was mostly pleased with how the formation held up.

“The key thing for us tonight when we talked about it, was getting on the front foot from the start of the game,” said the coach. “What we didn't want to do is that when they sat back and we moved the ball side to side, we didn't want to do that. We didn't want to play a tempo that suited Taipei.

“We wanted to play at our tempo. That's why we put out the formation we did. It's why we put out two commanding strikers, played two wide players and played three at the back; we really wanted to get on the front foot from the start. That was the reason that we played that system that we played tonight.

“We also wanted to make sure we tried to pressure the ball as soon as we turned it over. And so it was important for us to go out with really what we felt was the best attack information that we could go out with.”

One of the unquestionable major negatives on the evening was the head injury to midfielder Chloe Logarzo.

In what was her first game back in a Matildas shirt since tearing her ACL in a friendly with Ireland in 2022, the Western United skipper clashed heads with Chan Pi-han just before the half-hour mark and was forced off as a result – pleading with medical staff to be allowed back onto the field before fighting tears as she went down the tunnel.

Sermanni couldn’t yet provide a definitive answer on the 29-year-old’s status following the game but combined with Grant, Clare Hunt, Dani Galic’s scheduled return to their clubs following Wednesday’s game, indicated he’d need to make adjustments before Saturday.

“We don't know [the extent of Logarzo’s injury] yet,” Sermanni said. “The docs are still looking at her; she's got the old egg at the side of her head at the moment.

“She feels good. She's obviously kind of devastated by having to go off. She's waited quite a long time to get back in the team to get an opportunity. I feel disappointed for her. Hopefully, it's not too bad, and hopefully, she might come into discussions for the next game.

“You have an idea in your head [about squads for the two games] but quite often the game takes things in a different direction. For example, Chloe's injury. But we've also got a situation where Charli Grant, Clare Hunt, and Dani Galic are all going back so there are automatic changes there.

“The squad's obviously a bit more limited numbers-wise. So at the moment, I couldn't tell you what the starting team will be at the weekend. We just need to sort of sit down and try and work that out.”

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