Sam Kerr nears Australia return ahead of clash with Denmark, who aim to be party poopers
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Australia forward Sam Kerr (left) celebrating with her teammates during their 4-0 win over Canada on July 31.
PHOTO: AFP
SYDNEY – Australia captain Sam Kerr has returned to training and expects to make her first Women’s World Cup appearance in Monday’s last-16 tie against Denmark, with coach Tony Gustavsson set to make a late call on whether she starts, and how many minutes she can play.
Kerr, Australia’s all-time leading scorer with 63 goals, injured her left calf on the eve of their World Cup opener against Ireland and sat out the group stage.
She told Australia’s Channel Nine on Saturday that she “will play” against Denmark, and although coach Gustavsson hinted the striker will play a part, he will leave it late to decide how much she will feature at Stadium Australia.
“We had a nice moment as a team yesterday, to see her back with her boots on and touching the ball and be with the team in training,” Gustavsson said. “It was a very good feeling for her, the players and me.
“She’s a player we’ll talk about tonight to see how many minutes would be suitable, and looking at 90 minutes and potentially extra time, how to get the best out of Sam Kerr in our game plan tomorrow.”
Co-hosts Australia have shown they can win without Kerr, and that they can do so convincingly, having knocked out Olympic champions Canada with a 4-0 rout that sealed their place at the top of Group B.
The Matildas beat Denmark 3-1 in a friendly last October but Gustavsson said he was impressed by their World Cup campaign so far.
The Danes, led by captain and star forward Pernille Harder, finished runners-up to England in Group D.
Australia, who reached the quarter-finals at the 2007 World Cup, can equal their best-ever run with a win over Denmark. The winner of Monday’s game will face either France or Morocco.
The Danes are aiming to ruin Australia’s party and kick-start their own celebrations by knocking the co-hosts out, coach Lars Sondergaard said on Sunday.
“We’re going to have our own party if we succeed in ruining a party and that part is fine by me. Of course, it’s going to be a difficult game but we see chances,” Sondergaard told a press conference.
“We’re living a dream and we want to continue living it as long as possible, until the final day of the tournament...
“We’ve looked at Australia’s latest matches, particularly the ones here at the World Cup and they’ve shown quite clearly improving form but also tremendously good counter-attacks and team play in general.”
Denmark (above) will make it their mission to ruin Australia’s party.
Also eyeing an upset is Nigeria coach Randy Waldrum, who believes knocking European champions England out would be “transformational” for the sport in the country as the sides also prepare to meet in the last 16 on Monday.
He confirmed that star striker Asisat Oshoala is “fit and healthy” and said fellow forward Desire Oparanozie could feature for the first time since picking up an injury before the tournament.
Former England midfielder Karen Carney believes that five-time African Player of the Year Oshoala will be the main threat.
She told Powerleague: “She is a top quality striker who is more than capable of pulling something out of the bag...
“Despite how good England were against China, Nigeria are a top nation that will cause us problems. They have a world-class striker and individual players who will be difficult for us. They are fighters and they fear no one.”
England, meanwhile, received a boost when coach Sarina Wiegman said key midfielder Keira Walsh could play against Nigeria. Walsh, who hurt her knee during England’s 1-0 win over Denmark on July 28, returned to training on Sunday. REUTERS, AFP