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Laid low by an ACL injury, Matildas midfielder Chloe Logarzo is confident she'll come out of the experience a better person and player for the 2023 World Cup.
Matildas midfielder Chloe Logarzo is confident she'll come back from her ACL injury a better person and player for next year's World Cup.
Logarzo has been sidelined since suffering the injury during last year's friendly loss to Ireland in September, missing January's Asian Cup as a result.
A two-time Olympian, the 27-year-old was also part of Australia's 2019 World Cup campaign, and is using her recovery to ensure she hits the ground running to get back into Tony Gustavsson's plans before the 2023 tournament on home soil.
"I've kind of taken this journey and this route to the World Cup in my stride and really been thankful for the opportunity to be able to work on myself as an individual player, to make myself the best that I can for the team and for the Matildas," Logarzo told AAP.
"Really excited to see how I progress and grow as a player and as a person."
Logarzo worked as an analyst for Channel 10 during the Asian Cup in India, as the Matildas suffered a disappointing quarter-final exit to South Korea.
She says the chance to stay involved in the game - even from a television studio - had been hugely beneficial.
"It allowed me to feel as if I was a part of the Matildas team just seeing it and having a different perspective of the Asian Cup but still attached to the Matildas," she said.
"I didn't feel too left out which I'm really grateful for and I've really enjoyed just seeing the other side of the football field and really just staying amongst it and not being detached from this world
"It's made it a lot easier for my rehab."
Logarzo has also used her layoff to undertake ambassadorial duties and was on hand alongside Football Australia chief executive James Johnson and ex-Matilda Grace Gill for confirmation of a friendly against New Zealand in Canberra on April 12.
That match is one of two against the Football Ferns next month, as preparations start to ramp up for what Logarzo expects to be a transformative World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2023.
"It's really important that we come home and play in front of our fans in the lead-up to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup to keep them engaged but also to make them excited for what's to come," she said.
"I truly believe it's not just going to change women's football but it's going to change the landscape for sport in Australia.
"Hopefully it'll be able to ignite the passion that European countries have for the love of the team. Hopefully we're able to inspire that in the lead-up to it."
