Sam Kerr becomes the latest WSL star to suffer an ACL injury as Chelsea confirm the forward sustained ligament damage during their warm weather training camp in Morocco

Chelsea and Australia star Sam Kerr suffered a cruciate ligament injury while training in hot weather in Morocco, her club have confirmed.

She is the latest player to suffer a serious injury, with several top players in WSL and world football affected, including Beth Mead and Alexia Putellas.

Chelsea Women published in X (formerly Twitter): “Chelsea Football Club can confirm that striker Sam Kerr suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury during our warm weather training camp in Morocco.”

The club confirmed that Kerr will be assessed by a specialist in the coming days before her rehabilitation will begin with Chelsea’s medical team.

Chelsea’s later tweet read: “Keep your head up @SamKerr1. We are all with you,” as well as a blue heart emoticon.

Chelsea have confirmed Sam Kerr suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury during warm weather training.

Kerr has scored 99 goals in 128 caps for Australia, of which she is captain.

The 30-year-old is out of contract with Chelsea at the end of the current season, having signed for the Blues as a free agent in December 2019.

Chelsea’s next match is against West Ham in the Women’s FA Cup and Kerr’s fiancée Christy Mewis recently completed a move to the Hammers.

Kerr scored 99 goals in 128 caps for Australia.

Despite missing the group stage of the 2023 World Cup on home soil due to pre-tournament injury, he returned for the knockout games and Australia finished fourth, their best finish in the competition.

The Matildas repeated the news on X, reporting: “Our captain @SamKerr1 will be out for an extended period with a torn cruciate ligament.

“We are all supporting you as you begin your journey to recovery, Sam.”

Tony Gustafsson, Head Coach of CommBank Matildas: told the team website that they would give Kerr their full support.

He said: “Given how hard Sam has worked over the last six months to get back into the game, this news is a devastating blow for everyone.

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

“We are now focused on making sure she has all the support she needs to recover and rehabilitate.”

The injury setback means Kerr is likely to miss the 2024 Olympics, with Australia taking part in qualifying matches next month to see if they make it to the showpiece competition in France.

Mead, who suffered a cruciate ligament injury during Arsenal’s Women’s Super League match against Manchester United in November 2022, keeping her out until October the following year, tweeted a message of support.

Meade wrote: “Gutted, no words can help right now @samkerr1 but sending you lots of love and a speedy recovery.”

Beth Mead, who suffered a horrific ACL injury in 2022, sent a message of support.

She suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in an Arsena WSL match in November 2022.

Kerr suffered a setback ahead of the 2023 World Cup but returned for the knockout matches.

In December 2022, Arsenal striker Viviane Miedema also suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury that kept her out of action for more than nine months.

England captain Leah Williamson was also forced to withdraw from the 2023 World Cup with a knee injury, while Spain star Alexia Putellas was forced to pull out of Euro 2022 after suffering a cruciate ligament setback in the build-up to the tournament.

The growing number of female footballers suffering cruciate ligament-related injuries is an issue that urgently needs to be addressed by those in charge.

While women’s football is growing and players are facing more demanding top-level matches, they do not have the same resources provided to their male counterparts.