Sam Kerr withdraws from Matildas squad for Canada friendlies after injury

The Matildas have been dealt a blow by the news that their captain, Sam Kerr, will miss the upcoming friendlies against Canada due to injury.

Football Australia and Kerr’s club Chelsea confirmed that the striker had sustained a foot injury and would remain in England for treatment throughout December.

It’s the latest in a string of squad changes forced by injuries after goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold (arm), Charlotte Grant (hamstring) and Holly McNamara (knee) were also ruled out.

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Melbourne City forward McNamara had just been recalled to the Matildas for the December matches when she tore her ACL for the third time while scoring the match-winning goal in an A-League Women game.

West Ham announced on Monday that Arnold, their captain, had been diagnosed with an arm injury that forced her to miss their 0-3 defeat to Arsenal.

The Matildas coach, Tony Gustavsson, has named Jada Whyman, Alex Chidiac and Remy Siemsen to replaced the injured players. Chidiac played during the Olympic qualifying window in Perth, while Whyman and Siemsen were part of the extended squad that assembled before the World Cup but were ultimately cut from the final list.

Kerr will be replaced by the midfielder Sarah Hunter, who is receiving her first senior national team call-up.

Hunter, a former Young Matildas captain, was a standout player in the previous ALW season, winning the premiership and championship with Sydney FC.

The 20-year-old has made the move to Europe, plying her trade in the French Division 1 Féminine club Paris FC, who are now second in the league behind Ellie Carpenter’s Olympique Lyon.

In her latest appearances for Chelsea, Kerr scored a hat-trick against Paris FC in her team’s 4-1 win in the UEFA Women’s Champions League and also scored against Leicester City in a WSL game.

The Matildas retain some firepower in forwards Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler and Hayley Raso, while the veteran defender Steph Catley is likely to wear the captain’s armband in Kerr’s absence.

Kerr and the other injured Matildas have about three months to recover before Australia’s next round of Olympic qualifying against Uzbekistan in late February.

Australia take on the Tokyo gold medal winners and world No 10 Canada in friendly matches at Starlight Stadium in Victoria on 2 December (2.30pm AEDT), then at BC Place in Vancouver on 6 December (2pm AEDT).

Matildas squad: Teagan Micah, Lydia Williams, Jada Whyman, Ellie Carpenter, Steph Catley (captain), Clare Hunt, Alanna Kennedy, Courtney Nevin, Clare Polkinghorne, Charlize Rule, Alex Chidiac, Kyra Cooney-Cross, Katrina Gorry, Emily van Egmond, Sarah Hunter, Amy Sayer, Aivi Luik, Clare Wheeler, Tameka Yallop, Caitlin Foord, Mary Fowler, Remy Siemsen and Hayley Raso.