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Sam Kerr is set to play her first game on Australian soil in Chelsea colours as part of a four-match friendly extravaganza next year in Sydney – but the Premier League sides involved could be heavily depleted due to the World Cup.
Kerr and fellow Matildas star Ellie Carpenter will lead Chelsea in a clash against the A-League Women’s All Stars on August 12 at Allianz Stadium – the final game of the new-look Sydney Super Cup, which also includes Chelsea’s men’s side and Tottenham Hotspur.
Former Spurs star Jermain Defoe and Sydney FC’s Marcel Tisserand on Monday.
Enzo Maresca’s Blues will open their tour with a showdown against the Western Sydney Wanderers on July 28 at Accor Stadium, while Spurs will meet Sydney FC the following night at Allianz Stadium.
Then two London rivals will face each other for the first time on foreign soil on August 1, also at Accor Stadium.
From an Australian perspective, the women’s clash shapes as the main event, with the A-League Women’s All Stars side likely to involve several of Kerr and Carpenter’s Matildas teammates just a few months removed from their home Asian Cup campaign.
Chelsea’s trip is just the second by a Women’s Super League side to Australia; last year, Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord and Kyra Cooney-Cross all played for Arsenal against the A-League Women’s All Stars.
Sam Kerr and Chelsea are coming to Sydney.Credit: Getty
The rest of the program, however, will be shaped by what happens at next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
As part of their contracts, Chelsea and Tottenham have committed to bringing their strongest available squads. But players who represent their countries at the World Cup are entitled to a mandatory three-week break immediately after their final matches - meaning that any players whose national teams reach the quarter-finals or beyond will not travel to Sydney.
For instance, if England make it that far, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, Reece James and Levi Colwill and Tottenham’s Djed Spence, assuming all are selected for the World Cup, will instead be on holiday.
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Both squads have a wide enough spread of internationals that promoters believe that no matter what happens, a strong contingent of world-class talent will be involved.
Sydney FC are technically holders of the Sydney Super Cup, having seen off Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic the last time the tournament was held in late 2022 during the break for the World Cup in Qatar.
Postecoglou’s controversial sacking from Spurs, despite guiding them to their first trophy in 17 years, removes some of the local interest in their visit. But his successor, Thomas Frank, has relieved building pressure on his position with a 2-2 draw away to Newcastle last week and a 2-0 win over his old side Brentford.
“When you look at his other jobs … he always starts slow,” said Spurs legend Jermain Defoe, who flew to Sydney to be part of the announcement.
“New manager, it’s a different squad, new players have come in, I just hope we finish the season strong. We’re good enough to do that, 100 per cent.
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