She’s back! Sam Kerr steps up recovery from ACL injury at Chelsea training camp in Portugal

Sam Kerr has joined Chelsea on their mid-winter training camp in Portugal as she looks to continue her recovery from a long-standing knee injury.

The Matildas’ captain has not been in a Chelsea squad in the last 12 months after she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury at the equivalent warm-weather training break in Morocco last January.

Head coach Sonia Bompastor said last month the 31-year-old was expected to make her eagerly awaited return to action in either February or March.

Yet the news of her involvement in the Portuguese camp prompted excitement among Blues’ fans that she might be back even earlier than hoped.

But Chelsea said both Kerr and United States striker Mia Fishel, who is also on the trip after suffering her own ACL injury last February, won’t be training with the rest of the squad as they concentrate on their own recovery.

And Kerr herself has made it clear she won’t be rushing back until she is completely satisfied she is fully fit.

Sam Kerr is stepping up her recovery from her long-standing knee injury at Chelsea as she joined the English champions on their mid-winter training camp in Portugal

The Matildas’ captain hasn’t been in a Chelsea squad in the last 12 months after she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury last January (pictured, with partner Kristie Mewis)

Sam Kerr is pictured with her beloved grandmother Coral Kerr who was struck by a car near her Perth home last month

Kerr was at the wedding of Matildas teammate Emily van Egmond with her father Roger when she learned of the crash

Although Matildas’ interim coach Tom Sermanni will be delighted she’s back in training at Chelsea, February’s She Believes Cup in the USA in February will surely come too soon for any prospect of a return with Chelsea undoubtedly wanting to ease her gently back into the fray.

It will also be no cakewalk for Kerr to get straight back into the team, with unbeaten Chelsea having won 15 out of all their 16 matches this term.

The impressive run of results have seen the Blues soar six points clear in the Women’s Super League.

They have also reached the quarter-finals of the Women’s Champions League with a perfect winning record.

But the sight of Kerr posing for photos with her star teammates Millie Bright, Erin Cuthbert and Guro Reiten – known as the club’s ‘Fantastic Four’ – on Chelsea’s official X feed will delight the Blues’ faithful.

After their training week in Portugal, Chelsea will resume action against Charlton in the fourth round of their Women’s FA Cup defense at their Kingsmeadow home on Sunday, January 12.