While Lisa De Vanna and Kyah Simon continue to power Australia forward, it's the work of midfielder Kellond-Knight that has caught the coach's eye.
Deployed as holding midfielder to shield the defence, Kellond-Knight was a powerful force behind the Matildas' shut-down job on the Nigeria attack on Saturday (AEST).
Australia won 2-0 to set up a crunch final group game with world No.5 Sweden on Wednesday (AEST), when a draw would be enough for the Matildas to advance to the last 16 knockout stage.
Stajcic will again trust Kellond-Knight to bring shape to the midfield triangle.
"Elise Kellond-Knight has probably been our best player in the last two matches - consistently blocking passes, blocking lanes and good distribution when she gets there.
"She is a fantastic screening player ... she's key."
The 24-year-old Brisbane Roar player said the coach's praise was "very kind and unexpected".
"I've been given a role and have tried to put my head down and do that work," she said.
"It's a quiet achiever role. You're not necessarily the star player but you're doing a lot of work off the ball to keep the team together and make sure that midfield functions."
After the Nigeria win, Kellond-Knight said she was looking most forward to family time on a recovery day, with her parents and brother having travelled to Canada for the Cup.
Then, it's straight back into planning for the match against Sweden, who drew 0-0 with group leader the United States.
Kellond-Knight said the result caused her team-mates to think twice about their next opponents in the "group of death".
"We thought maybe Sweden would be the weaker side but, against the US, they seem to be up for the challenge," she said.
"We know they're not necessarily the quickest in the backline so I think that will be something we can try and capitalise on, especially with our pace up front."
In good news for the Matildas, Sam Kerr has been cleared of major damage to her jaw from a nasty off-the-ball incident.
Kerr was elbowed by Nigerian defender Ugo Njoku, who could face a long ban.
"We've got a badge on our shoulder that says 'fair play' and it's not really fair play," Kerr told Fairfax.
