Sam Kerr: Chelsea and Australia striker out for the season after ACL injury

The Australia and Chelsea forward Sam Kerr has become the latest Women’s Super League player to suffer an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and will miss the remainder of the domestic season, her club announced on Sunday.

Kerr suffered the knee injury at Chelsea’s warm-weather training camp in Morocco before next weekend’s FA Cup game against West Ham.

The forward joined Chelsea midway through the 2019-20 season and has scored 99 goals in 128 games for the Blues. “Sam will be assessed by a specialist in the coming days and then begin her rehabilitation with the club’s medical team,” the club said in a statement.

Kerr will sit out the rest of the season with the injury, which means her last game played under the influential manager, Emma Hayes, will prove to be the London side’s 3-1 away win at the Swedish side Häcken in the Champions League on 20 December. She will also miss the Olympics in July if Australia qualify.

The news was described as “devastating” by the Matildas’ manager, Tony Gustavsson.

“Considering how hard Sam has worked over the past six months to return to play, this news is a devastating blow for everyone,” Gustavsson said.

“With her ability to lead by example, Sam’s guidance and influence on the team is significant and, as a result, this will be an incredible loss for the national team.

“Our focus now is on ensuring she has all the support she wants and needs to navigate recovery and rehab.”

Hayes is leaving Chelsea at the end of the season to become the head coach of the US women’s national team. Since recruiting Australia’s talismanic forward, who missed the majority of her home World Cup in 2023 with a calf injury, Chelsea have added nine trophies to their cabinet, winning the league four times, the FA Cup three times and the League Cup twice.

The 30-year-old has also won the Golden Boot twice, was runner-up to Spain’s Aitana Bonmatí at the Ballon d’Or awards last year and finished third on the Guardian’s list of the top 100 female footballers in 2021 and 2022.

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Kerr joins a long list of women’s players who have suffered ACL injuries, which usually take at least nine months of recovery before a return to action. England’s Lionesses lost the Euros golden boot winner, Beth Mead, and their captain, Leah Williamson, to ACL injuries before their World Cup campaign. The Netherlands’ record goalscorer, Vivianne Miedema, and the Canada forward Janine Beckie also suffered ACL injuries that kept them out of the World Cup.

The global players union, Fifpro, has reported that an increased workload, travel and insufficient rest have all contributed to an increase in injuries, including ACL injuries.

In December European football’s governing body, Uefa, announced the introduction of an expert panel on women’s health to seek a deeper understanding of ACL injuries and their frequency among women players.