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The Matildas slumped to a shock 3-2 defeat to Nigeria in Brisbane that now has the host nation’s Women’s World Cup knockout hopes hanging by a thread.
Emily van Egmond opened the scoring in first-half stoppage time but Nigeria hit back with three straight goals to secure a crucial three points and move into second in Group B, while the Matildas dropped to third despite a late consolation goal.
It has left Matildas coach Tony Gustavsson with an almighty battle on his hands as they likely must now beat Olympic gold medallists Canada on Monday to book a spot in the Round of 16.
Foxsports.com.au breaks down how everyone performed in Player Ratings!
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Celebration to shock! Matildas stunned | 00:47
Mackenzie Arnold – 5
Nigeria made a statement with their first corner of the match, putting five attackers inside the six-yard box to pressure the Australian.
She still managed to battle through the bodies and get a – somewhat unconvincing – punch to the ball.
Although she wasn’t at fault for Nigeria’s first goal, Arnold will have wanted to get a stronger hand to divert the initial effort further away from danger.
For Nigeria’s third goal, she had a major miscommunication with centre back Alanna Kennedy which allowed Asisat Oshoala to sneak in and score.
Steph Catley (C) – 5
Her corners were dangerous and she came close to opening the scoring with a strong attempt from a tight angle inside 15 minutes. While she remained largely restrained in attack against Ireland, this time she had a greater opportunity to get forward and had a solid impact. Was unfortunate Nigeria’s equaliser went through her legs, but the skipper should probably have done better.
Alanna Kennedy – 5.5
Kennedy was largely solid throughout and made some key blocks as well as distributing the ball well.
However, she’ll rue the woeful miscommunication with Arnold for Nigeria’s third goal which ultimately proved to be the match winner.
Popped up with a late, late goal in second half stoppage time, but apart from that she didn’t have much of an impact when thrown forward.
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Clare Hunt – 5.5
We’ve spoken for years – decades at this point – about Kennedy’s distribution and long-range passing, but Hunt stole the show in that regard against Nigeria. She sprayed long passes all around the park, regularly finding Cortnee Vine and Hayley Raso with sensational diagonal balls. Nigeria presented a tough challenge in the air, yet Hunt was up for every battle.
Ellie Carpenter – 4.5
It was a similar story to the opening game: Carpenter charged forwards as frequently as possible, getting into good positions – then failing to deliver the final ball. She was badly caught out of position for Nigeria’s opener, when the Matildas should have been knuckling down and seeing out first-half stoppage time.
Emily van Egmond: 7.5
There are few players as experienced and as calm under pressure situations as van Egmond, and her technical brilliance was on full display against Nigeria. After a brilliant 15-minute cameo against Ireland, she was trusted to replace Mary Fowler (concussion) against Nigeria, and opened the scoring with a clinical first-time finish. It was her 31st international goal in her 129th appearance. She opened up plenty of space for her teammates with her intelligent positioning in a floating number 10 role – happily drifting to the wing as well as tucking deep to help the central midfield duo. Like all midfielders, she gave away possession too frequently at times.
Katrina Gorry – 6.5
With Nigeria typically sitting in two clear lines when out of possession, Gorry’s balls over the top became a crucial method of breaking the lines.
Defensively she was very solid, perfectly timing her tackles – except for a 36th-minute late attempt that could easily have earned her a yellow card.
Became a little careless with possession at times in the later stages of the contest as the desperation levels increased, but was again the Matildas’ metronome in the middle of the park.
Kyra Cooney-Cross – 5
Cooney-Cross was never afraid to throw herself into the challenges and topped the team in tackles made with five. However, she struggled to show her attacking qualities as a central midfielder alongside Gorry and Van Egmond, and had difficulties stopping the flow of Nigerian counters.
ATTACK
Cortnee Vine – 4.5
The Sydney star was in the wars throughout the first half. She crashed to the ground and slammed her head on the turf after a rough tackle from Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie after 20 minutes, which saw the defender cop a yellow card. In stoppage time she was cleaned up again, this time leaving her limping. She was kept very quiet throughout the match.
Caitlin Foord – 6
Worked hard on and off the ball, and got a deserved assist when she got into her ideal position – with the ball at her feet, running at a defender down the left flank.
Might have felt a little too much adrenaline after that opening goal, because she picked up a yellow card hardly 30 seconds later!
Her shooting boots – or head – were lacking at times, misplacing a couple of shots including a close-range header at the death.
Hayley Raso – 5.5
In the 31st minute, Raso raced to the back post and had a tap-in from close range as a Catley corner somehow made it through a pack of bodies, but she couldn’t wrap her boot around it and guide the ball home.
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SUBSTITUTES
Clare Polkinghorne – 6
She kept things solid at the back and was as dependable as ever. A hard-nosed veteran in every sense of the word. “Polks is a true winner,” Gustavsson said, but she couldn’t make a difference on attacking set pieces.
Alex Chidiac – 6.5
A brilliant cameo off the bench that leaves us asking why it took Gustavsson so long to bring her on the pitch.
“Chids came in and she was that game-changer … she did exactly what she was asked to do,” Gustavsson said.
