Arch rivals Brazil to clash with Matildas

FRIENDLIES might not be most apt term for a series of upcoming matches between the Matildas and Brazil.

The teams have history with two of their most recent battles played out in major arenas and causing both sides heartache.

Led by soccer’s greatest female player Marta, Brazil knocked Australia out of the Rio Olympics last year in a quarter-final shootout.

It was payback for the Aussies sending Brazil to the sidelines at the 2015 World Cup.

Now the Matildas and Brazil, currently ranked seventh and eighth in the world, will meet on Australian soil in a two-match International Series at Pepper Stadium, Penrith, on September 16 and McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle, on September 19.

The matches will follow the teams clashing at the Tournament of Nations in the US.

“There’s a bit of history, a bit of tit-for-tat and a great rivalry between us that we have built for years,’’ Matildas coach Alen Stajcic said.

“We’ve been coming up against each other for years, going back to 2007 and 2011 when they beat us at the World Cup.

“Games are always very close and tight so it’s great preparation for us for next year’s Asia Cup.’’

Stajcic said he was excited Marta would play in Australia.

The forward is a five-time FIFA World Player of the Year and regarded as the greatest female player of all time.

■ FOR once, Ellie Carpenter won’t be the odd one out, nor will she the baby of the team.

The teenage football star, who made her Olympic debut for Australia in Rio last year, is one of the most experienced players in her latest team.

Carpenter, 17, and fellow Australian player Alex Chidiac, 18, headline a 23-strong Young Matildas squad named for a series of matches against their US and Canadian under 20 counterparts in Canberra this week.

The Young Matildas’ first match at the AIS is on Saturday against Canada, who open the series against the USA today.