With her Tokyo Olympics dreams dashed, Karly Roestbakken takes her recovery one day at a time

The Canberran had hoped to be back from injury and in contention for selection in the Matildas side heading to Tokyo this month, but she is still weeks off making a return to the pitch following some injury setbacks.

"I'm not going to lie, it was very disappointing," she said.

"The Olympics have been one of my biggest dreams, ever since I was a little girl, so for it to come to this, and be so close to it as well, was very, very hard.

"But I do believe that everything happens for a reason and I think going through this is going to make me mentally stronger and has made me realise how much I want it and love the game."

The 20-year-old had surgery a few months ago in Norway to remove a piece of bone in her foot, which was causing discomfort for months before her tarsal condition - where two bones were abnormally connected - was diagnosed.

After more than a year away from home, Roestbakken returned to Australia in June to spend her time back in the capital for the beginning of her rehabilitation journey.

"It's a bit of a challenging time but having my family around has been the best part," she said.

"It's nice being home and able to hang out with them and have that support network as well."

With her rehab underway, the defender does not want to put a timeline on herself getting back on the pitch for LSK Kvinner FK, instead she is taking it one step at a time.

"Honestly I'm not putting a timeframe on it," she said.

"I'm taking it day by day at the moment.

"It's kind of hard with these things, because as soon as you put a time frame on it you get that in your mind."

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She plans to jet back over to Europe at the end of the month to rejoin her club in the Toppserien league and continue her rehab heading into the side's tail end of the season.

However, she will be watching the Matildas closely in Tokyo, with her prediction they will do well in their matches against New Zealand, the United States and Sweden.

The national team has not won a fixture since March 2020, when they beat Vietnam 2-1 and the closest they have gotten to a win was a 0-0 draw against Sweden last month.

"It's a tough group, but I know that they can go out there and do it," she said.

"I know what they can produce and I'm very excited to see that.

"You can pick out individual players but they all work so well together ... if I had to pick out one name it would definitely be Ellie Carpenter. She's one to watch, she had a phenomenal season over in France and has done really with Lyon."

Two members of the Matildas side are signed with NSW NPL side Blacktown Spartans. Kyra Cooney-Cross and Courtney Nevin are playing in the NPL in the W-League offseason and make up the squad filled with players linked to European clubs.

"It showcases the football in Australia," Roestbakken said.

"It's great to see if someone playing locally in Spartans is now off to an Olympics, it puts it in perspective and makes you realise Australia does have really strong and talented players based locally."

Once she is back on the pitch, her next goal will be making sure she puts her name forward for the FIFA 2023 World Cup on home soil.

The Matildas kick off their Olympics campaign on Wednesday, 9.30pm AEST.