Sam Kerr setback highlights impact of ACL injuries in women’s game

On Sunday, another high-profile casualty was added to the ever-increasing list of women players affected by the dreaded anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Chelsea’s prolific striker Sam Kerr sustained the injury during the club’s warm weather training camp in Morocco before the restart of the domestic season and has been ruled out of action for the foreseeable future.

The Australian forward became the latest to be affected, continuing the current spate of ACL issues in the women’s game. At least 13 Women’s Super League players are currently going through recovery, including the England captain, Leah Williamson, the Manchester United defender Gabby George and the Leicester winger Hannah Cain.

Kerr is undoubtedly an icon of the game, and her absence will be felt keenly by both her club and country. With her contract up at the end of this season, there will also be questions about whether she will be seen in a Chelsea shirt again.

Since arriving in west London four years ago, she has become a leading figure in Emma Hayes’s side, scoring 99 goals in 128 matches. Her natural instinct in front of goal, particularly on the biggest of stages, is second to none and has been key to the Blues’ impressive trophy haul (four WSL titles, three FA Cup, two League Cups) since her arrival.

The significant calf injury she suffered on the eve of last summer’s World Cup – one which she was still feeling the effects of at the start of this season – had made it a slow campaign so far by her high standards.

The 30-year-old, however, has still played a significant role as Chelsea look to chase down their fifth successive league title and make another attempt at the elusive Champions League in Hayes’s final season at the club.

Taking on the captaincy in the absence of the injured Millie Bright, she has four WSL goals to her name and is currently joint top scorer in the Champions League alongside Barcelona’s Salma Paralluelo.

“I don’t know anyone who just puts the ball away like she does. She really is so alert and decisive with her movement,” Hayes said after she scored a hat-trick against Paris FC. “If that’s her at 80% then I’ll take that every week. That’s not bad and I can’t wait for the 100% version.”

Sam Kerr’s ACL injury is a big blow for Australia as well as Chelsea with the Paris Olympics in the summer. Photograph: Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images

Sadly for Hayes and for Chelsea, they will not get the services of a fully fit Kerr for this season at least and it leaves the manager with a problem to solve. Does she stick with the personnel she has got or go hunting in the January transfer window for another striker?

For Kerr is so much more than just her goals – her press, her energy, instinctive vision and leadership are second to none and players who possess all those attributes are hard to come by.

The 22-year-old Mia Fishel was recruited in the summer as a back-up striker but despite her obvious potential is not yet at Kerr’s level. Her fellow American Catarina Macario is another exciting forward prospect as she nears a return to play.

She was signed from Lyon in the summer but had suffered an ACL injury herself in June 2022, which resulted in an extensive period out and she will inevitably need time. In addition, while perfectly capable of leading the line, she is more often utilised as an attacking midfielder, linking up with the forward ahead of her.

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The absence of Kerr will also be a significant blow for Australia, who are looking to qualify for the Olympics this summer. Tony Gustavsson’s Matildas will have to adapt to life without their captain and all-time leading goalscorer once more after her injury problems at the 2023 World Cup.

They face Uzbekistan in AFC Olympic qualifying in February, a tie which they are favourites to win. Paris 2024 would have been Kerr’s third Olympic appearance and a chance to get her hands on a medal after narrowly missing out at Tokyo 2020.

An ACL injury is a crushing blow for anyone who suffers from it, more often than not resulting in at least a nine-month absence from the pitch. The recovery is a long, and at times lonely, experience and unique to every player. Arsenal’s recent documentary Step by Step highlighted this aspect as it followed Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema through their return to action.

Women are three to six times more likely to pick up an ACL injury than their male counterparts and a lot of work is going into understanding the causes, potential prevention and recovery. The difficulty is that reasons are multifaceted and there can be any number and combination of factors.

The Uefa women’s elite club injury study, a report on 1,527 injuries over four consecutive seasons, from 2018 to 2022, published last week, highlighted that 64% of ACL injuries were non-contact.

Overloading, inconsistent loading, the menstrual cycle, stress and playing surface are just some of the many issues that can contribute. Fifpro, the players’ union, released a report in December 2023 highlighting work load, travel distance and travel time as potential reasons.

There is no doubt that football’s governing bodies, associations and clubs in the women’s game need to continue to step up to ensure their players are given the best possible chance to prevent such a challenging injury.

Kerr will now have to take the first steps in the arduous process of recovery. Football will undoubtedly miss her presence across the board while Chelsea and the WSL will hope that they have not seen the last of their talismanic striker in England just yet.