Chelsea striker Sam Kerr is undergoing surgery on Thursday following her ACL injury, manager Emma Hayes has confirmed.
Kerr sustained the injury during a warm weather training camp in Morocco and will miss the remainder of the Women’s Super League (WSL) season.
“She’s having surgery today (Thursday),” Hayes said, speaking ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup tie against West Ham.
“I’m gutted for her and gutted for the team. These things happen in football and she knows that. The important thing is that we are here to support her, and the recovery and rehab begins.
Around 20 per cent of women’s players are yet to be paid their share of prize money for their participation at the 2023 World Cup.
Before the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, FIFA, the world football governing body, guaranteed prize money to players to be distributed via participating federations.
The amounts before tax ranged from $30,000 per player for group-stage participation to $270,000 per player for those on the tournament’s winning team.
As many as six out of the 32 participating countries, however, have not yet passed on the prize money sent by FIFA to players for.
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes has criticised the Women’s Super League schedule for not giving English sides the best chance of success in Europe.
Chelsea were held to a 2-2 draw by Real Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday, with the game kicking off at 8pm. They returned home in the early hours of Thursday morning, before facing Liverpool in the WSL at 1:30pm on Saturday.
Chelsea are the only remaining English side in this season’s Champions League and Hayes called on the Football Association to give WSL teams the best chance of progressing in the competition by considering player.