Sam Kerr claim rejected as Football Australia boss addresses ugly allegations about Matildas
The Matildas are at the centre of a storm after their early exit from the Paris Olympics.
Football Australia boss James Johnson has emphatically denied the governing body's relationship with Sam Kerr has soured, as well as shooting down claims the Matildas were too 'pampered' in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics. The fallout to the Matildas' early exit from the Paris Games has continued in recent days, with coach Tony Gustavsson departing amid claims he'd lost the playing group.
Socceroos legend Robbie Slater also blasted FA for their 'pampering' treatment of the Aussie women's team, and has been highly critical of their preparation. Johnson arrived home from the Olympics on Sunday and was immediately hit with questions about FA's relationship with superstar injured captain Kerr, and whether Gustavsson had fallen out with the playing group.
Johnson said he wasn't concerned about the increased scrutiny the Matildas have received in recent weeks, after their worst Olympics campaign since 2000 - which came after their fourth-placed finish at last year's World Cup. "I think it's a good thing because it shows how strong the Matildas are in the Australian community mainstream at the moment," he said.
"Where it comes to some of the language around pampering it's actually silly, they are not being pampered. We are investing in this program the way we should because the players deserve to be treated like professionals and they are.
"The reality is we set the Matildas program up the same as what we set the Socceroos up. These are a great group of women, they are great footballers, they are playing for the biggest clubs in the world and quite frankly they deserve to have a program as good as the Socceroos.
"We've come a long way over the past three or four years, it's a different program the Matildas' to what it was four years ago. But the reality is if you compare ourselves to the United States women's program, they are investing 300 per cent more than what we are doing, so I think we're on the right path. I think we've made a lot of good progress and I would say we would go the other way, the more we can invest in this program the better."
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Johnson rejected any suggestions that FA's relationship with Kerr was at an all-time low. The skipper missed the Paris Games because of injury, and was notably silent in terms of her social media activity during the failed campaign.
"It's a very good relationship," Johnson insisted. "I'm in touch with Sam right now, she's obviously doing her rehab at the moment so she's close to getting back on the field for Chelsea and as soon as she's available to come back into the team were looking forward to welcoming Sam back."
Claims have emerged in recent days that Gustavsson had lost the dressing room, with one insider reportedly describing his time in charge of the Matildas as "four years of hell". But Johnson said: "I've seen some of these rumours go around but I don't think that's correct at all.
"We have systems in place, we've put feedback channels in place over the past three years, so after every camp and after every major tournament there are feedback channels that players give to the federation on an anonymous basis. I can categorically say that feedback has not come and since the loss to the United States I've had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with some of the leadership team and that's not come up whatsoever."
with AAP
