Alen Stajcic and the meteoric rise of the Philippines women's national football team | The former Matildas boss and his dreams for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™

<p>Football in Australia was shocked with the sacking of Alen Stajcic as the Matildas coach, at the eleventh hour ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2019™.</p><br><p>Following a stint at the Central Coast Mariners and amidst COVID lockdowns, Alen found himself with a new challenge at his feet: that of guiding the Philippines women's national team through the qualification process for a World Cup. And. they made it - for the first time ever.</p><br><p>Hear a fascinating, candid chat with Alen as Isobel Cootes quizzes him on motivation, appreciation...and how it feels to be the coach on the sideline as your team heads into a penalty shootout!</p><br><p><strong><em>Watch every match of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™ live and on-demand on Optus Sport.</em></strong></p><br><p>Listen to Optus Sport's award-winning limited series: <strong><em>Football Belongs</em></strong>, charting the cultural threads of Australian society through the lens of nine football matches:</p><br><p>Acast: https://play.acast.com/s/football-belongs</p><p>Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2AzBek8ub2oEsWLYHWetg7</p><p>Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/football-belongs-australias-football-identity-by-optus/id1543067162</p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>