USWNT star Naomi Girma forced out of long-awaited Chelsea debut after re-aggravating prior leg injury

U.S. women's national team star Naomi Girma's long-awaited Chelsea debut was cut short Sunday as the American star limped out with an apparent injury. Making her first start after a record transfter against Brighton, Girma lasted just 59 minutes before appearing to re-aggravate a calf injury that had limited her previously.

Early in the second half, Girma motioned to Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor, who subsequently replaced her with Nathalie Bjorn. Chelsea went on to draw the match, 2-2, although the Blues still maintain a five-point lead atop the Women's Super League.

After the match, Bompastor said that Girma's injury "didn't look too bad" but that the club will assess it again on Monday. 

Sunday was Girma's first game since making the record-breaking move to Chelsea in January. The USWNT star became the first seven-figure transfer in the women's game, with Chelsea paying the San Diego Wave a reported $1.1 million transfer fee to sign the 24-year-old central defender.

Injury issues have limited her recently, though, and they also kept her out of the USWNT squad for the SheBelieves Cup as they fell 2-1 to Japan to finish second in that competition for the first time since 2019.

Player of the match Madison Haley spoke of her battle with Girma, telling Sky Sports,"I played with Nay in college so it was nice to play against her again. I told her in the tunnel that she should remember how it is to play against me. It was a fantastic battle. She is a great signing for Chelsea and I am really excited to have one of my good friends here in the UK."

Girma wasn't the only American to feature for Chelsea on Sunday. After making her own long-awaited USWNT return during the SheBelieves Cup - including a crucial goal in a victory over Colombia - Catarina Macario came off the bench as a substitute for Chelsea.

In addition to her goal, Macario assisted on another during the three-game SheBelieves Cup run.

Chelsa will have a pair of matches over the next week, starting with Wednesday against Leicester City at home. After that, they'll then play host to Crystal Palace in the quarterfinal of the FA Women's Cup.