Chelsea coach Sonia Bompastor said on Monday it remains unclear when star forward Sam Kerr will be ready to return to action.
"She's working really hard," said Bompastor. "All the performance staff are doing everything for her to play this season. We'll see how it goes. We know we only have a few games left now. Hopefully, yes, but it's difficult for me to have a clear answer."
Kerr has been out of action since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury during warm weather training in early January 2024. She had been included on Chelsea's Champions League roster in the hope she would be able to play a part in their campaign, but she was never fit enough to even be named in a matchday squad prior to the English club's exit at the hands of Barcelona on Sunday.
Despite their UWCL exit, Chelsea still have much to play for. They have three matches left in the Women's Super League, in which they are on course for a sixth successive title sitting six points clear.
That campaign finishes on May 10.
Eight days later Chelsea meet Manchester United at Wembley Stadium in the FA Cup final. Kerr would ideally be able to feature in that having scored in three successive deciders won by Chelsea from 2021-2023, netting five goals in total.
Kerr returned to individual training in January and her recovery has now gone well beyond the usual length of time for an ACL. The 31-year-old has scored 99 goals in 128 matches since making her Chelsea debut in January 2020.
Australia's next matches are May 30 and June 2 against Argentina as the Matildas build towards hosting the Women's Asian Cup next March.
Information from AAP was used in this story.
