Cloé Lacasse's return to Utah Royals FC almost storybook, but story isn't over yet
The former Arsenal forward and Canadian international made her return to Utah Royals FC, nearly scoring an equalizer on her final touch of a 1-0 loss to league-leading Kansas City.
Cloé Lacasse’s return to Utah Royals FC was nearly the stuff of legends, when the former Arsenal forward and Canadian international subbed into Friday night’s contest in the 67th minute.
Barely 282 days since the Royals placed Lacasse on the injury list with a torn ACL and MCL sprain due to an injury sustained last October 20 against Angel City FC, Lacasse went through a full week of training, warmed up with her teammates, and reached for a header near the end of the sixth of stoppage time.
But the header sailed high of the net moments before the final whistle.
“I probably needed to grow a few more inches,” she quipped after.
“Heading hasn’t really been in the rehab yet. But maybe this week.”
Lacasse made her return from a devastating knee injury, a return that was storybook in nearly every way — except for the ending.
Temwa Chawinga scored the lone goal of the match in the 82 minute to lift Kansas City to the NWSL-leading Current’s eighth consecutive victory, 1-0 Friday night.
The familiar result dropped the Royals to 1-11-3 a week after securing a road point via 1-1 draw with Orlando in the club’s return from the NWSL international break.
But Friday night’s match was different for another reason: Lacasse came off the season-ending injury (SEI) list a few days prior, was welcomed back in an emotional team meeting, and head coach Jimmy Coenraets made her available for selection eight days after the club traded Ally Sentnor to Kansas City for $600,000 in transfer funds.
ACL surgery has gotten more advanced in recent years through medical technology and additional techniques in recovery and rehabilitation.
But Lacasse’s return just over nine months removed from surgery was rapid. At age 32, perhaps moreso.
There’s no need to call it a medical miracle. The Canadian international simply had a small village around her in support, and the will to find a way to add to the NWSL team that brought her back to North America from Arsenal WFC almost exactly one year ago.
“I definitely had an amazing team around me,” Lacasse said. “I’m also super hard-headed; I know what I want and I know how I want to do things. That can be hard to be around at times, but the med staff here has been fantastic and my medical team in Canada helped me out as well.
“It’s important to surround yourself with people who know how you work, when you’re having a bad day and when you’re having a good day. But I think for me, the biggest win was the strength work I did during this injury — and I think because of that, it came a little bit quicker than some may have anticipated.”
The group around her also grew, at times, with teammates also going through rehab. One of them — recent attacking addition Cece Kizer, who spent time on the injured list for Utah since joining the club on a two-year deal in April — also celebrated a career milestone Friday night.
It was Kizer’s 100th regular-season appearance in the NWSL since she was drafted by Houston in 2019. That she was on her fifth team in the league since then — in addition to a brief stay with Kolbotn in the Norwegian Toppserien — was not lost on her, either.
“I challenge someone to try to name all of the coaches that I’ve played,” she said with a laugh. “It’s crazy."
“It’s a hard league to play in,” she added. “Staying healthy is something that I’ve struggled with in the last year and a half. It’s been tough to have these minor setbacks … but I have a great group, a great support system, and I’m looking forward to the 101st.”
With the transfer window opening and recent departures like Sentnor and the recall of Ana Guzmán, who was on loan from Bayern Munich, the Royals have an opportunity to add to their roster before the end of the season.
But the most important additions may be the ones returning from the athletic training room.
“It’s obviously not my position to be crying or aiming for any transfers,” Utah manager Jimmy Coenraets said. “But it was made clear that our outgoing players would be replaced. That’s what we’re aiming for right now.
“Our biggest transfer was getting Cloé Lacasse back. Other big transfers was getting Paige, Cece and Po back in a position to compete with the rest of the squad. I think every coach will shop for more players or better players.
“But if we can get these kinds of performances with the group that we have, we can keep moving.”
Utah is back home Friday, Aug. 15 to host Angel City FC (8 p.m. MT, NWSL+).
