As the WSL takes a pause for international duty, the focus inevitably shifts to Arsenal Women and the potential outcomes of their season. What if the Gunners’ women fall short in the WSL, the Continental Cup, and the FA Cup? The recent extension of head coach Jonas Eidevall’s contract by the club indicates a belief in his long-term vision rather than immediate silverware. This move signals that the assessment of his tenure goes beyond short-term gains.
A parallel can be drawn with Mikel Arteta’s journey at Arsenal’s men’s squad. Patience was the key, and the results speak for themselves – the team has become a formidable force under his guidance. Eidevall, having joined Arsenal Women in 2021, stands to benefit from a similar period of development.
The summer transfer window saw significant investments in the squad, bringing in standout players like Alessia Russo, Cloe Lacasse, Kyra Cooney-Cross, Amanda Ilestedt, and Laia Codina. While the expected acquisition of Mary Earps didn’t materialize, the team had laid down solid foundations for the season. The slow start may not align with initial expectations, but it’s crucial to remember that building a cohesive unit takes time.
Currently, Eidevall is in the process of determining his best lineup, evident from his rotations in the last four league games. The new signings, no matter how talented, require an adjustment period to acclimate to their new environment and understand the team’s dynamics. Additionally, players like Vivianne Miedema and Beth Mead, returning from injury, need time to regain their form and rhythm.
This season was seen as an opportunity to end Arsenal Women’s WSL title drought. However, if this goal proves elusive, it’s imperative for fans to exhibit patience. The campaign should be viewed as a crucial period of bonding, adapting to Eidevall’s tactics, and preparing for a dominant showing in the subsequent season.
The aim should extend beyond the league to encompass league cups and, notably, the Champions League – a competition they should strive to qualify for and excel in. With time, trust, and a collective effort, Arsenal Women can build a talented squad to ensure sustained success in the future, but we need to allow time for Eidevall to bring his project to bear fruit, just like Arteta has done for the men.
Michelle Maxwell
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To me this is the season that I want and expect Arsenal to seriously compete for the EPL and CL. I feel like Arteta has got a good enough squad to compete. It’s all up to him to get the best out of this very good / capable squad.
No excuse for not going into the last two weeks of season out of tough with 1st place in the league. I do think that now Arteta has the team to go all the way in the EPL and CL. Now he’s got to prove he can manage this very good group of players.
I don’t think there is any similarity at all with Arteta’s situation. For several years the men’s team has been trying to play catch-up with significantly better teams, most notably Manchester City.
In the women’s game, for years we have had a strong enough team to win the league but have been let down either by the odd dismal performance or a lack of clinical finishing. To win the WSL, you can only afford to drop a few points in the whole season.
Arsenal should have won the league 2 seasons ago but ended up losing it by 1 point (and with a better goal difference than Chelsea), largely because of the post-Christmas 2-0 loss at bottom-of-the-table Birmingham, when Birmingham were odds of 95 (94/1) on Betfair just to win the game. The lack of preparation and proper conditioning of the players for this game was bordering on criminal. Also their finishing at times was below par and cost them dearly in some of the big games.
Last season was a step backwards and this season has also seen an absolutely dismal start, with crucial points frittered away in the league and an early exit from Europe, even after strengthening the team over the summer.
Eidevall seems like a nice bloke but I’m not convinced he has what it takes in this job.
As far as I can remember, while the Emirates was being built and paid for with few if any transfers on the men’s side. This trickled down to the women and the period of four or five years left us way behind the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City both financially and in squad size.
What we have now, with defensive exceptions, is a world class squad and once they gel it will better than ever Jonas is the man for the job.
A world class squad that went out of Europe at the qualifying stage and dropped 5 points in the first two WSL games of the season, in a league where last season’s winners only dropped 8 points in the whole season.
As I said, despite all the big signings we have gone backwards over the last two seasons, since throwing away a league title that we should have won.
For those who are happy with things as they are, good luck to you. As for me, I’m sick to the back teeth of seeing Chelsea win the league year after year, and if that finally changes this season, it’s unlikely to be Arsenal at the top of the tree.