Planting in an area with matted, dense roots

I have a 10x10 area that was once Azaleas. I removed them a few weeks ago and the roots are SO matted and dense. I was planning on using this area for veggies. I topped it with a few inches of compost.

Will the matted roots eventually decompose in this area? I’m worried my young plants won’t be able to get their roots below the matted area. Looking for low work fixes for this, I recently had surgery and can’t work the area at all currently. I have pumpkins planted for now, not thriving. next year I’d like to do a 3 sisters garden in this space.