Sam Kerr 'relishing every moment' after scoring brace on first Chelsea start since 2023 in Champions League thumping of St Polten

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Sam Kerr said she is "relishing every moment" after scoring a brace on her first Chelsea start in almost two years. The Australian suffered a torn ACL in December 2023 and only returned in September. Having featured nine times from the bench since then, the 32-year-old started for The Blues in their UEFA Women's Champions League tie at St Polten and scored two late goals in a 6-0 victory.

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Sam Kerr said she is "relishing every moment" after scoring a brace on her first start for Chelsea in almost two years as The Blues beat St Polten 6-0 in the UEFA Women's Champions League.

The Australian, who returned from a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in September, missed several chances earlier in the game but made it 4-0 from close range in the 75th minute before nodding home a sixth in stoppage time.

Having made nine appearances from the bench since returning from her 20-month spell on the sidelines, Kerr is now looking forward to more opportunities from the start.

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Speaking at full-time, the 32-year-old said: "Of course, I prefer to play more minutes. When you come on for 20 minutes, it's a bit hectic, there's a lot of subs, and it can be a bit wishy-washy.

"I feel like today was good. I had a few chances in the first half. I'm just happy to be back out here playing in the Champions League again with an amazing team. I'm relishing every moment."

Kerr had not started since December 2023 after suffering the injury during a training camp with Chelsea.

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Asked whether the feeling of scoring changes after injury, she said: "It feels a bit sweeter, but it feels a bit weird.

"I didn't score for so long that I was like, I haven't celebrated, really. I haven't got that celebration thing yet. I've got to score a few more."

Kerr is now up to four goals for the season, having netted as a substitute in the Women's Super League against Aston Villa on her first game back from injury, and versus London City Lionesses.

There was another notable inclusion for manager Sonia Bompastor, with Lauren James making her first appearance since the Euro 2025 final.

Sam Kerr scores Chelsea's fourth goal against St Polten

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The 24-year-old came on in the 76th minute and made an instant impact, as her strike from range deflected off Lisa Ebert and made it 5-0 to The Blues.

Asked about her players returning to fitness, Bompastor said: "That's really important. That's almost crucial when you have all your players available from a quality perspective, but also having depth and being able to rotate.

"As we mentioned before the game, it was a really quick turnaround between the game on Saturday and this one, so when you are able to bring on some fresh legs and quality, it always helps a lot."

Wieke Kaptein opened the scoring in the 13th minute before a pair of goals from Catarina Macario either side of the break, including one from the spot, put Chelsea in control.

Their emphatic victory in Austria has taken them up to second in the league phase standings, on seven points from their opening three games.

Watch and stream the Premier League, Men’s and Women’s FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more on TNT Sports and discovery+

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