ALEN Stajcic has coached at the highest level of women’s football, but he said his stint with the Philippines at the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup will go down as his best experience ever.
A former coach of world-ranked Australia, Stajcic guided the Filipina footballers in a historic run that saw book a spot in the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup after becoming one of the top four teams in the Asian Cup held in India.
It's an experience he will forever cherish, Stajcic said.
“I think this is probably the best experience in my coaching career,” said Stajcic, who guided the Australia squad to World Cup appearances in 2015 and 2019 along with an appearance in the Olympics.
“I’ve been coaching for 20 years. To take this group who are so dedicated, so determined, so much disciplined, so much heart, so much spirit, considering what they have to overcome to this point.
“I don’t think I’ve ever coached a group who has so many hurdles to overcome just in the preparation of the tournament. To get to this level and to fight and compete until the last kick of the semifinals is truly a remarkable effort.”
Three-month buildup
This Philippine squad kicked off its Asian Cup preparations with a three-month training camp in the US under Stajcic and became the Asian Cup's surprise package.
The Filipina booters started the Asian Cup by ending the curse of Thailand, beating their Southeast nemesis for the first time after 13 games, before reaching the quarterfinals, also a first for the country.
They then booked a spot in the World Cup, a first by any Philippine team of any gender and at any level, with a dramatic victory over Chinese Taipei on penalties while setting up a semifinal clash with powerhouse Korea.
Stajcic said he was so proud to see the Filipinas fight until the final whistle against a Korea side ranked No. 18 in the world.
“It’s really emotional watching them try to fight to the last second of the game. There’s so many teams who would have given up and throw in the towel. It’s been a wonderful experience getting to know the players and every member of the staff.
"It’s such a unified group. It’s such a close group. As I said before, it’s no surprise that the whole country back home in the Philippines is proud of the group,” said Stajcic. “When you create history, everytime you step on the field, there’s nothing you can really ask for."
The Philippines lost, 2-0, to Korea on Thursday, but it also signalled the start of the World Cup set to be hosted by Australia and New Zealand next year.
“The bar of the performance has been raised. The expectations now for the country has been raised and now, everyone has to come on board.
"We have eight months to prepare for the World Cup. I’m sure they will do everything that we can as a country to give those players the maximum possible chances of performing at that stage,” said Stajcic.
But first things first, Stajcic will have to decide his future with the Philippine team since his short-term contract ended after the Asian Cup, although the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) has expressed its desire to renew him.
Stajcic is still keeping his cards close to his chest.
“That question is still going to be answered. It’s all very fresh at the moment. Got to let everything settle down. But surely that will be sorted in the next two or three weeks,” he said.
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