Chelsea Women and Matilda’s striker Sam Kerr suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury at a training camp in Morocco, Chelsea Football Club confirmed.
In a statement Chelsea announced that Kerr is set to be assessed by a specialist and is due to begin rehabilitation with the club’s medical team.
Chelsea team mate Erin Cuthbert told The River: “We know we’ve lost a goal threat, but at the end of the day we’ve got players that are able to step in and fill her shoes. She will be missed of course, she’s one of my best mates, it’s never nice to see.”
Kerr is set to miss the remainder of the season as well as the 2024 Olympics in Paris. The injury also means she will not play under manager Emma Hayes again, who is off to the US in the summer.
“I’m gutted for her and the team, these things happen in football but I think the important thing is that we’re here to support her,” said Hayes.
The striker has scored 99 goals since signing for Chelsea in 2019, and bagged the WSL Golden Boot in 2020-21 and 2021-22 consecutively.
Hayes revealed that the injury was sustained by the striker turning and shooting, a football action that Kerr does “every day”.
ACL injuries plagued the 2023 Women’s World Cup, as key players such as Beth Mead, Leah Williamson, Vivianne Miedema and Catarina Macario were side-lined. Research has shown that women are up to six times more likely to injure their ACL through no contact compared to men, due to a larger hip to femur ratio, the menstrual cycle, poor boot design and many other factors.
Arsenal and England’s Mead who has recently returned after being out for 11 months with an ACL injury shared her support for the Australian on X, saying: “Gutted for you, no words will help right now but sending big love and wishing you a speedy recovery.”
Kerr took to Instagram to share her appreciation for her teammate Millie Bright, saying: “I don’t know what I would have done without my Millie B these last few days. Been an absolute queen.”
Emma Farr
Balsam Maki
Denise Meriche