Australia captain Sam Kerr could make her first FIFA World Cup 2023 appearance in Monday's last 16 clash against Denmark after she returned to training on Saturday.
Kerr, Australia's all-time highest scorer with 63 goals, suffered a calf injury on the eve of their World Cup opener against Ireland and missed all three games in the group stage.
Coach Tong Gustavsson also confirmed that the star player will feature in the knockout clash but is yet to decide how many minutes she will get.
"We had a nice moment as a team yesterday, to see her back with her boots on and touching the ball and be with the team in training," Gustavsson said. "It was a very good feeling for her, the players and me.
"She's a player we'll talk about tonight to see how many minutes would be suitable, and looking at 90 minutes and potentially extra time, how to get the best out of Sam Kerr in our game plan tomorrow."
Co-hosts Australia have performed well without Kerr as they eliminated Olympic champions Canada with a thumping 4-0 win that sealed their place at the top of Group B.
The Matildas defeated Denmark 3-1 in a friendly last October but Gustavsson said he was impressed by their opponent’s football World Cup journey so far. The Danes, led by captain and star forward Pernille Harder, finished in second place behind England in Group D.
Australia’s best-ever run in the mega event came in 2007 when they qualified for the quarter-finals and can match that feat with win over Denmark. The winner of Monday's game will lock horns with either France or Morocco.
"We need to be humble and realise that we need to focus on them every single second of the game tomorrow and be as solid defensively as we were against Canada," Gustavsson said.
"They are very organised ... they have threats left and right and in very different ways. It's going to be tough and we need to bring our A game."