AUCKLAND — Alen Stajcic is keeping his gaze on the Philippine Women’s National Football Team and its preparations for Norway in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, rather than the apparent dysfunction in the Norwegians’ camp.
While the Filipinas were in a celebratory mood after their 1-0 win over the host nation New Zealand in Wellington last Tuesday, things were unraveling for The Football Girls during and after their clash against Switzerland in Hamilton.
Star player Ada Hegerberg was injured and substituted just before the match started. Caroline Graham Hansen, another key performer for the Norwegians, lashed out at head coach Hege Riise because she was benched against the Swiss, who earned a 0-0 draw.
Graham Hansen has since apologized to Riise, as well as the rest of the team, but the damage has been done. Amidst all of the drama from the Norway squad, Stajcic just wants his team to focus on what it can control for its pivotal match.
“Oh, look, we don’t know what’s going on in their camp. We saw that Hegerberg went off in the last game. But as everyone knows, you never knock a champion. And she’s a champion. And she’s earned the right to be a champion,” said the Australian mentor.
“You don’t get a player of the world awards unless you’re an amazing footballer. So we’ve got an immense amount of respect for her as an individual and for their team. I’m sure every team has its own issues, and just because they’re maybe publicized, we know that all that stuff can be exaggerated,” he added.
“But I’m also wary of the wounded animal as well. They would have taken a hit to their pride, and they can come out fighting, and they’re not champions for no reason. Champions always know how to fight back and come back. So we have to be ready for that.”
Just like in their previous matches against Switzerland and New Zealand, the Filipinas will be underdogs once again as they look to win and book an outright ticket to the round of 16. A draw will leave them reliant on Switzerland to do them a favor against New Zealand, while defeat means elimination.
Stajcic’s players will face counterparts who play their professional football for heritage clubs such as Chelsea, Inter Milan, FC Barcelona, Manchester United, and Lyon. In contrast, as the former Central Coast Mariners mentor stated in the past, he has members of his starting 11 who are not signed with any professional clubs.
“They’ve got a bunch of world-class players. They’re a fantastic team, and you don’t get to be at the top of the world. They’re ranked 12, but they have been in the top 10 basically the last 20 or 30 years. They’ve got an amazing pedigree and culture around women’s football. They started a league,” said Stajcic.
“Those Scandinavian countries around Norway, including Norway, have had women’s Leagues for 30 or 40 years when no one else really cared about women’s football. When you’ve got that history, you’ve also got that little bit of accountability and pressure, which they do. But there’s no doubt that they’re a good team and they’re a top team. And that’s why they’re the favorite to win the group initially.”
Ultimately, it is up to the Filipinas to decide their fate. Any instability in the Norwegians’ camp is a distraction from the main goal — breaking new ground by qualifying for the knockouts.
