Sam Kerr is set to leave Chelsea when his contract expires this summer.
Kerr is the Women’s Super League’s all-time leading scorer and one of the most iconic figures in the women’s game.
The Australian striker has scored 115 goals in 177 games in all competitions for Chelsea since joining the club six-and-a-half years ago.
She is one goal behind Chelsea’s all-time top scorer Fran Kirby and has a chance to break the scoring record in the club’s final game against Manchester United, which starts at 1pm on Saturday.
Reflecting on his move, Kerr said: “I was really happy when I looked back on my Chelsea career and played for the last time against Manchester United this Saturday.”
“I’m glad it happened and I’m really grateful to have been able to play for this club for six years and win as many trophies as possible.”
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Highlights of the Women’s Super League match between Everton and Chelsea, with Sam Kerr scoring two goals
Kerr will leave Chelsea after winning five Women’s Super League titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups and one Community Shield.
The 32-year-old has won two WSL Golden Boots in his first two full seasons at the club in 2021 and 2022. She also finished second in the Ballon d’Or in 2023, but suffered a serious knee injury that ruled her out for 20 months.
She returned to action in September and has scored 16 goals in 29 appearances for Chelsea this season.
Analysis: Chelsea need to reinvent themselves as a team capable of winning titles without Kerr.
Sky Sports’ Laura Hunter:
Kerr became Chelsea’s all-time leading scorer in the WSL with a goal against Leicester earlier this month. This is the first time she has scored in three consecutive WSL games since May 2023.
A return to form in time to become a Chelsea history-maker is very much coded. The manner in which she scored her 64th goal was also typical, arriving at the perfect time to meet Niamh Charles’ floating delivery.
Kerr’s dual movement makes her particularly difficult to track, and even when defenders manage to close in, her physical dominance and aerial power ensure that she rarely gets hit by a header.
The goal means Chelsea qualify for European football next season, with Sonia Bompastor attempting to reinvent a team that will inevitably take on the title with a new ensemble of players. Champions like Kerr, now retired, Millie Bright, who departed in January, and Guro Reiten were pillars of the bygone Emma Hayes era.
Bompastor must now find a foundation upon which to build his own. Perhaps no one is as prolific as the great Sam Kerr. But she has an iconic figure to model Chelsea’s next generation of strikers after.
The 32-year-old has won two WSL Golden Boots in his first two full seasons at the club in 2021 and 2022. She also finished second in the Ballon d’Or in 2023, but suffered a serious knee injury that ruled her out for 20 months.
She returned to action in September and has scored 16 goals in 29 appearances for Chelsea this season.
Will Manchester City’s Shaw replace Kerr at Chelsea?
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Take a look at Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw’s top goals of the 25/26 Women’s Super League season as she races for the Golden Boot!
bunny show expected to leave manchester city The contract expires at the end of the season.
After months of talks over a potential new contract, Shaw is understood to be keen to explore other options.
There is reportedly interest in the former Chelsea striker from other clubs, including those in the United States.
Shaw scored twice as City beat Chelsea to reach the Women’s FA Cup final.
