Sam Kerr ‘relishing every moment’ after first Chelsea start for 692 days
They say a week is a long time in football, let alone 99.
Sam Kerr knows this very well because the 692-day wait for the game to start at Chelsea ended on Tuesday.
Kerr’s career, who scored in his side’s 3-1 Champions League victory against BK Hacken on 20 December 2023, was hit by injury.
An anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered during a warm-weather training camp in January 2024 and various subsequent setbacks kept him out of competition until September of this year.
Kerr, who has scored two goals in nine substitute appearances this season, made the most of his first start, scoring two stunning goals in Chelsea’s 6-0 Champions League win over Austrian side St Polten.
“It feels good. I felt like I had to work on it, but yeah, I’m happy to score,” Kerr told Disney+.
“Of course I would prefer to play more minutes. When you come in for 20 minutes it gets a bit hectic, there are a lot of substitutes and it can be a bit dull. I feel today is good.
“I had a few chances in the first half. I’m happy to play with a great team in the Champions League again. I’m enjoying every moment.”
For a while, it looked like this wasn’t going to be Kerr’s night.
He may have started two friendlies in Australia last month but his sharpness is still coming back and he missed three chances he was expected to have in the first half.
While she finished fiercely early in the second half, her ill-timed run resulted in teammate Naomi Girma’s first-half header being ruled out for offside.
It later emerged that Kerr Europe’s defenders had hoped to never see again.
An excellent first touch on Wieke Kaptein’s cross cleared the ball from her feet, then a fierce right-footed strike left goalkeeper Carina Schluter helpless.
Kerr dropped into space from the defensive line for the second time, adjusted to meet Niamh Charles’ cross and curled a high header towards the goal.
“It feels a little sweeter, but it also feels a little weird,” Kerr said about whether the feeling of scoring goals has changed since his injury.
“I haven’t scored in so long that I feel like I haven’t celebrated. I haven’t done that celebration thing yet. I need to score a few more goals.”
After that, Kerr will aim for her first WSL start since December 17, 2023. Aggie Beever-Jones could feature against Liverpool on Sunday, having lost the last two matches.
“I feel 100% but I’ve been out for a while so I need to improve,” Kerr said. he said.
“It was a good set today, wasn’t it? It was a good set to spend good minutes in the national team. I’m definitely fit enough, now the important thing is to get miles on my legs. I’m ready to go.”
