The U.S. forward has had to be incredibly patient in recent years but is now hoping to finally show the Blues everything she can do
Catarina Macario was Chelsea’s not-so-secret weapon last season as the Blues completed an unprecedented unbeaten season in domestic competitions to seal a truly incredible treble. Perhaps the best illustration of the impact she had across the year was back in December, when she came off the bench at half-time with her team trailing 1-0 away at Real Madrid. Within 11 minutes, Macario had scored two penalties, the first of which she won, to turn the game completely on its head and ensure Chelsea topped their Champions League group. "She showed tonight that she is a world-class player," head coach Sonia Bompastor said in a glowing review at full-time.
Bompastor knows better than most just what Macario is capable of. The American’s best season to date came under the Frenchwoman in Lyon, when she helped propel OL to their most recent Champions League title. But that she was only named in Chelsea’s starting XI on 14 occasions last term is indicative of the challenges Macario has faced since that European triumph over three years ago.
This season, though, she hopes things will be different. As she speaks to GOAL ahead of the new campaign, which Chelsea begin at home to Manchester City in the Women’s Super League on Friday, Macario is buzzing after what she describes as a “perfect” summer. Part of that assessment is rooted in her travels around Europe and the five weeks she got to spend at home in San Diego, but it is also because she has been able to put in the hard yards in pre-season for the first time in several years.
"This season, I'm definitely expecting to just be free," she says with a hearty laugh.
Getty ImagesRebuilding foundations
Rooted in that comment from Macario is evidence of her admitted lack of patience, something which will have made the last few years even more difficult. After suffering an ACL injury in June 2022, it would take 21 months for the forward to return to action, with her able to at least mark the end of one of the most arduous and challenging recoveries in style, as she scored on a Chelsea debut that came some nine months after her signing was announced.
That comeback did not signal the end of the hard work that needed to be done to ensure all would be well moving forward, though. Last season, Bompastor was extremely careful with Macario and her loading in order to, in the words of the 25-year-old, “rebuild my foundations”. “I would definitely say that I am not necessarily a very patient person, just because I like putting in work and I find a lot of joy in doing that. So last year, we definitely had a lot – a lot – of talks, just to try and figure out what the right programme was,” Macario explains.
“My strength and conditioning coaches were trying to show me, 'Well, this is where you were before. This is the most load that you've had in two or three years'. Of course, they were happy with that, but at the same time, as someone that demands a lot from myself, it was very tough and mentally taxing as well, just because I know – or think I know – what I need to do in order to be the best version of myself. But sometimes you just have to be patient because certain things are out of your control. You also just have to listen to the experts and trust that they know what they're talking about.”
AdvertisementGetty ImagesPatience is a virtue
It became a process in which it was important to celebrate the small wins and achievements, almost like a long injury recovery. “It's exactly like that,” Macario confirms. “You just have to take it one day at a time and recognise, 'Okay, yesterday it was like this. Today, it is like this and it's much better'. Even though it's not exactly where you may want to be, or how things were before, it's about the long game. It's a marathon, not a sprint. You've got to be patient in doing that and be consistent in putting in the right work.
“I think from January on, I was available for almost every game, which was a big achievement. Sometimes it's just about remembering how far you have come and recognising that you can't go from zero to 100. This season, I'm definitely expecting to just be free. Still making smart decisions but, at the end of the day, I just love playing, I just love getting better and I think hopefully we'll have that this year.
“I'm in a much, much better spot. I definitely feel like I've been able to at least start off being just like any other player. I think that is the most important thing and the most freeing thing, really, for myself, and I'm sure for the club as well, just to know, 'Yeah, Cat's fine. She doesn't need any extra treatment or anything. Just let her do her thing'. It's been nice.”
Getty ImagesWhetting the appetite
Despite the restraints placed upon her by that process, Macario was still able to ‘do her thing’ plenty last season, whetting the appetite for the Chelsea fans with each and every appearance she made. At the end of the campaign, the U.S. international had contributed 11 goals and five assists to the Blues’ treble-winning efforts, averaging a direct goal contribution every 88 minutes.
There will be many who expect big things from her this season, then, given the great place she is in, and Macario is one of them: “I do have high expectations of myself, for sure. I think every person has high expectations of themselves, you know? We have to, otherwise you're not pushing yourself. I'm just trying to be better every day. I have tried to work hard over the summer and during pre-season to just put myself in a better place so that I can at least just help the team a little bit more and bring my quality to the game. We'll see how it goes.”
Getty ImagesGetting stronger
It's hard not to think of the cliché that Macario could be ‘like a new signing’ for Chelsea in some ways next season, and she is not the only one. Sam Kerr’s own difficult ACL recovery should hopefully reach its conclusion soon, something her American team-mate is one of many to be excited about. “Sam will be a big, big addition,” she beams. “She's a tremendous player. It's a privilege to share a locker room with her.”
Similar can be said of Naomi Girma, who Chelsea signed for a then-world-record fee back in January but was only able to make eight appearances before the end of the campaign after picking up a knock on her debut. “I feel like I'm Nay's number one supporter,” Macario says of one of her closest friends. “I would trust her with my life. That is my Secretary of Defence, for sure. Just having her around would just add so much to our team and it would just make it so much better. For the people that don't know her already, I know that they won't be disappointed.”
That is on top of the transfer business Chelsea have done in this summer window, too. Ellie Carpenter is the big name among their four new signings and another player Macario knows well from her time in Lyon. “Having someone like that just helps take us to a different level, just to help raise the standard and keep that winning mentality,” she notes. “Sometimes it can be easy to just get complacent. I think when you have people like Ellie, people that are just competitors and are ruthless, it just helps keep you always on your toes. I missed playing with her. We have a very good connection.”