Four minutes from the end of extra time in Sunday’s Continental Cup final, the entire Arsenal bench poured onto the pitch at Molineux – and not just because Stina Blackstenius had scored what turned out to be the winning goal against Chelsea.
Yes, Jonas Eidevall’s side were a little closer to their only real chance of winning the title this season, but what’s more, they were beating a Chelsea side who had beaten them just two weeks before in another performance that proved that Arsenal could compete with the best in the country despite the disappointing result. inconsistent season they’ve had.
Add to that the loss of Frida Maanum in dramatic circumstances, after she collapsed on the ball, and Arsenal have overcome a mountain to ensure the 2023-24 season ends with tangible value. It is therefore not surprising that emotions ran high.
In response to these circumstances, Arsenal head coach Eidevall said: “One of the lessons from the Championship match against Chelsea was that we did not manage well in a stressful, high-pressure environment with the way we focused on the right things or communicated. That was a really important lesson from this match. If we want to be a successful team, we have to take ownership of these situations.
“This is probably one of the most difficult situations because it seems scary when Frida breaks down. It’s easy to get emotional, but the reality is that we have an excellent medical team and they are the ones handling this situation. We have to focus on football. We did it and first thing after the match we don’t care about winning, we care about how things are going with Frida.
“We are so happy that she is okay. It’s more important than that (the winner’s medal).
After their title fight ended at Stamford Bridge, similarly to last season, the Continental Cup final carried added weight for Arsenal.
They entered the 2023-24 season with high ambitions, but fell short in the qualifying phase of the Champions League group stages, and they made up ground in the Women’s Super League after earning a point in their first two matches. They showed signs of improvement, but were paralyzed by indecision. Built for the Champions League, Lotte Wubben-Moy admitted it was a “special team with a lot of talent that didn’t live up to its potential”.
The Continental Cup was an opportunity to correct that a little, as a few individual performances showed.
Wubben-Moy herself was the first to set a milestone. With Johanna Rytting Kaneryd running at the Arsenal backline in the first minute, and most of them falling back, the 25-year-old stepped forward to win both the ball and a foul. From that point on, she dominated the one-on-one against Mayra Ramirez, knowing when to squeeze and thwart the attacker, while impressing with short, clipped passes through midfield.
Before her well-being was questioned, Maanum was another notable artist. Replacing the injured Lia Walti, who played in the last encounter against Chelsea, the Norway international started as a number 10 but joined Blackstenius in the front row and supported defender Jess Carter and goalkeeper Hannah Hampton. She disrupted Chelsea’s build-up, forcing Hampton on several occasions and ultimately helped Arsenal pose a greater threat in attack by positioning herself close to Blackstenius when the Swede was used as a target.
“She started her season last year in Lyon with a performance like this where she was absolutely phenomenal in the way she played defensively,” Eidevall said. “It’s a great way for Frida to get into the game and start expressing herself on the ball. This game has a lot of comparisons to that. It’s important for the team and also for Frida as a player to have this defensive performance, so it was really nice. It is an essential element of our success today.
Emma Hayes admitted Chelsea were “locked out” in the first half as Maanum’s all-round contributions helped set the tone. Arsenal were in control of the first half but threatened to end the afternoon with a performance typical of their season. They showed promising signs but their lack of clarity in the final third could have cost them dearly.
Maanum’s performance was all the more impressive considering she has only started six league matches this season. Eidevall couldn’t say when Maanum would return to action, but as in the 3-1 win over Manchester United, his decision to start Blackstenius and Cleo Lacasse provided a glimpse of what will be needed next season: a better understanding and use of tools. at his disposal.
Lacasse played on the right for most of the season before being used on the left – where she played for Benfica – against Manchester United. Her impact was instantaneous and, although she didn’t have the finishing touch against Chelsea, she was an equally important outlet at Molineux.
The size of this season’s squad became irrelevant once Arsenal missed out on the Champions League. Likely to finish third in the WSL again, propelling them into the first round of the Champions League, they cannot afford to make a similar mistake and leave players of this quality deprived of minutes. Eidevall knows he has talented options on the field. It is now a matter of giving these talents the necessary opportunity to flourish together while building better understanding. This is why it is crucial to build for next season.
Last week he admitted he “won’t wait until the end of the season to try to find out why we’ve been inconsistent.” That was evident in this performance, with a slightly different midfield setup evidence of learning the pitfalls of traveling to Stamford Bridge. However, there is one problem that the Swede knows he must resolve during the offseason.
“What most people see with the team is just the tip of the iceberg,” Eidevall said. “It’s our performance. But I see everything underneath. I see the day-to-day, the environment, the culture we are building and how it fits into the long-term plan. I see we are heading in the right direction. I certainly see it. We have a problem to solve. At the end of this season: our consistency.
“Our level to compete with the best teams has been very good this season. We have the potential to beat any team. Three seasons ago, that wasn’t the case. It was very important when I arrived, to work with this culture and make the team competitive against the best teams. We are now. What’s important is that we do it in a way that we can be proud to represent Arsenal. We play our way. You can see our DNA when you play and it’s important that it’s sustainable.
“We need to improve consistency. This is a really important thing if we want to win in more than one competition.
The only competition that has shown consistency is the Continental Cup – important in giving Arsenal something quantifiable in consecutive seasons.
Compared to last year’s triumph at Selhurst Park, this must be a starting point for Arsenal to prove they have more than just ‘potential’ – especially as, for now at least , it was the last meeting between Eidevall and Hayes before Chelsea began their own era.
(Top photo: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)