Tale of two strikers as former teammates duel for World Cup glory | Kieran Pender

Star strikers Sam Kerr and Pernille Harder are the faces of women’s football in their countries. But the former Chelsea teammates will be fierce rivals when Australia meet Denmark in their World Cup clash

Sam Kerr and Pernille Harder share more than a few similarities. They are the faces of women’s football in Australia and Denmark respectively, national team captains and figureheads for the sport. They are among the best attacking players in the world, with a penchant for scoring – each averaging a goal every second game for their country. They are even similar in age and stature – just a year and a few centimetres apart. And they have spent the prime of their careers playing together, forming a potent partnership at Chelsea until Harder’s recent move to Bayern Munich.

But on Monday, when the Matildas meet Denmark in the round-of-16 at the Women’s World Cup, only one of these celebrated goal-scorers can triumph. In what is expected to be Sam Kerr’s first match of the tournament, returning from a calf injury suffered three weeks ago, the Matildas’ star will go head-to-head with her former team-mate. It will be a tale of two strikers (although the versatile Harder can play anywhere across the front-third).