Sam Kerr has a knack for making his opponents doubt with each call from the back of the defense, and with each overpowered strike in the penalty area. But since the start of the tournament, the Australia striker has also become a queen in the art of instilling uncertainty in the brains of adversary coaches, unable to know in advance if the one who represents the major threat to the country -host will be on the lawn or not.
Injured in a calf on the eve of the entry into the running of the Australians – a glitch never named with precision by the medical staff of the selection -, the player of Chelsea indeed remained on the bench during the first three matches, before come into play in the 80th minute against Denmark in the round of 16 (2-0). In a quarter of an hour on the lawn, the Matildas star had time to be dangerous, but also to get a new scare on a false move that made him wince and hold the top of his right thigh .
“Not rusty”
With five days off between eighth and quarter, will she have enough time to apply for a starting position? “No one really knows how she is. These Matildas keep secrets better than any team I’ve come across so far“, remarks Adam Peacock, journalist for the channel holder of the World Cup in Australia, Channel 7, and for the specialized site Code Sports.
“It’s a great relief to be back“, launched the player after her round of 16. “I feel good. Thought I was a little rusty, but no, I feel great“. Les Bleues will therefore have to prepare an anti-Kerr plan, but also an alternative plan if the Australian captain does not start the match. His return is “a huge boost for us“, insisted the other striker Caitlin Foord. “For the other teams, it’s scarier that she’s back and playing again“.
The profile of the attacker is scary indeed. At 29, Samantha Kerr has 63 goals in 122 caps; and 29 goals in 38 appearances this season for the Chelsea Blues. “Sam is the best striker in the world. You can’t see it any other way“, noted his partner Emily van Egmond, who would accept without a second thought to lose his starting place if Kerr was fit against the Blues.
A pleasure to play with her
In the French team, the striker of 1.68 m is already monitored. “Who is Sam Kerr?“, Kerr’s club partner Eve Périsset joked on Wednesday. “She’s a player who makes very good deep calls, it’s a treat to play with her for that. We know the qualities she has in the box, she doesn’t need 10,000 chances to score a goal“explains the defender of the Blue, who also appreciates”his heading game, his presence on crosses” and his “very good timing“.
Sam Kerr during Australia – Spain in the Nations Cup in Sydney, February 19, 2023
Credit: Getty Images
Omnipresent on every street corner in Australia, on advertising posters for Fifa or partner brands of the “Matildas”, Sam Kerr represents much more than a simple player in the workforce led by Tony Gustavsson. His entry into play against Denmark, for example, thrilled the Sydney Olympic Stadium and its 75,000 spectators on Monday.
“He’s a star, but not only here. In England too, he is a superstar, an icon of women’s football with everything that goes with it, the quality on the pitch and the marketing around it.“, describes the French midfielder Kenza Dali, who also plays in England at Aston Villa. “She is one of those very rare players. But I won’t hesitate to eliminate her, she eliminated me enough in England“.