Chloe Logarzo has ruled out the possibility of starting for Western United in tomorrow’s A-League Women grand final against Sydney FC, with the midfielder to be given until the last possible moment to prove her ability to play a role off the bench. However, with a home Women’s World Cup on the way, there is more to her and United’s thinking than just the decider.
The highest-profile signing of United’s maiden ALW campaign, Logarzo has been haunted by a persistent case of Plantar fasciitis throughout her return to the Australian top flight and hasn’t logged competitive minutes for the side from Melbourne’s west since January 14, when she played 34 minutes off the bench in a 2-1 loss to Western Sydney.
She made six appearances for Western before that, with those minutes against the Wanderers bringing her season tally to an accumulated 212 minutes.
Despite battling foot problems – which arose as her body attempted to compensate as she recovered from a torn ACL – the Matilda proved a game-changing force in two of those games, scoring a brace in her side’s 3-2 win over Melbourne City back in December and the equaliser in United’s come-from-behind win over Perth Glory on New Year’s Day.
Initially arriving on loan from NWSL side Kansas City Current, she returned to the United States in February, only to then land back in Tarneit after she was unexpectedly released by the American side – throwing her plans of a late run at a Women’s World Cup berth into chaos.
See Also: Australia’s Chloe Logarzo ready to grab late chance at Women’s World Cup place
Subsequently watching on from the sidelines as her teammates booked a spot in the decider through a 1-0 win over Sydney in a qualifying final, she has undergone a one-day-on, one-day-off training protocol in an attempt to bring her up to a level where she can attempt to feature in some capacity on Sunday.
“Well I definitely can’t start, that’s one thing,” she told reporters. “So definitely be coming off the bench.
“It’s going to be one of those decisions. If I’m coming off a bench, how long am I going to play? What’s the impact that I can bring? They’re all the conversations I’m going to have to have tonight. I haven’t played a game since January, so how much of an impact can I make coming on? Can I play any more than 15 minutes?
“I’m giving myself the best opportunity that I can. Mark [United coach Mark Torcaso] has got the decision whether I’m going to be on the field or not, but I’ve been training with the girls and it’s been great.
Enjoying Joey’s coverage of Australian sport? Your support helps keep it possible.
You’re seeing this advert because this is an unpaid, self-published piece.
You can support his ongoing work by buying him a coffee
“Seeing if I’m going to be fit enough to be there and I want every single one of the girls to have the opportunity to play as well. So if I’m not up for it, then I’m not up for it. But it’s up to Mark.”
Addressing reporters as his team landed in Sydney on Saturday afternoon, Torcaso said that with Logarzo’s World Cup hopes being kept firmly in mind, it would ultimately be up to the club’s medical staff to determine how many minutes she could handle.
The coach, however, made it very clear that he wouldn’t have any hesitation in naming the 28-year–old if that tick of approval came.
“I think it’s close,” he said. “She’ll train today. If she gets through today’s session the way we want, she’ll be in. She’s looking alright, we’ve just got to make sure she gets through and ticks a few more boxes.
“We’ve also got to look after her, we want her to go to the World Cup. We want to make sure that it is the right thing to do. If the physios and the medics reckon no, we won’t risk that. If they think that she’s got 20 minutes, 30 minutes in her then we’ll 100% take that.”
Having made her debut at the 2019 iteration in France after missing out at Canada 2015, Logarzo’s desire to stage a late run at a once-in-a-lifetime home World Cup has been her preeminent goal since she tore her ACL in a friendly against Ireland in September 2021.
She made it clear that while Sunday’s contest was a mammoth one, it was just one part of a bigger picture.
“There are pros and cons to playing and not playing,” she explained. “There’s a grand final here but there’s also a bigger picture. So we’re gonna sit down as an organisation and have a conversation whether we’re gonna go or not.
“In my heart, of course, I always want to play so we’re just gonna see how the training session goes today, how I went with travelling, how my foot goes and then we’ll assess from there
“Playing in a grand final’s always special and it’s amazing to be able to do it where it’s the club’s inaugural season. So you don’t get these opportunities very often and I’m so excited to be able to do it with these girls.”
Enjoying Joey’s coverage of Australian sport? Your support helps keep it possible.
You’re seeing this advert because this is an unpaid, self-published piece.
You can support his ongoing work by buying him a coffee
JDL MEDIA 