Rosa Kafaji is one of the players that the Gooners are looking forward to seeing this season. Rosa Kafaji’s admission that her idol is Brazilian legend Ronaldinho, along with the admission from her former BK Hacken coach Robert Vilahamn (now with the Spurs women) that she is destined to be one of the best, explains why many believed she would be the player to take our Gunner women to the next level.
Unfortunately, in a run of games (the first four games of the 2023-24 WSL season) in which our Arsenal women have been accused of lacking creativity in the final third, in addition to not being clinical, Kafaji, one of Arsenal’s most creative talents, has not received much consideration.
Eidevall has given the impression that he does not believe she can make a difference, despite the fact that some thought she’d be the X-factor on which our gunner women’s offence would rely to resolve offensive issues.
Giving her “time to adapt” is not a justification for overlooking her, in my opinion. So, why is Kafaji not a regular starter for Arsenal when the team needs a spark in attack?
Cloe Lacasse’s comments about her time at Arsenal may provide the answer. During her one and only season with our Gunners women last term, the Canadian international asserts that the primary challenge she faced was the lack of freedom to express herself and enjoy playing on the pitch.
“At the end of the day, you want to get minutes, you want to score goals, you want to be able to be creative and be the type of player that you are,” she said. “And I think my type of characteristics were being a little bit limited and a little bit restricted at Arsenal, which didn’t allow to bring out my best characteristics.”
Players like Kafaji are ones who you don’t limit with tactics; instead, you let her express herself on the pitch and watch them pull off something special. So, is Eidevall’s inability to allow players with “that character” to express themselves the reason he is opposed to bringing Kafaji into the mix, as he believes she will influence the implementation of his tactical decisions?
I can’t help but believe so since I’m questioning why she was signed if not to be played, when a number of clubs were interested in her in the hopes that she would transform them.
Susan N
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Cloe Lacasses comments hit the the nail on the head. Eidevall’s tactics are too regimented and predictable. There’s no point in having players with flair and creativity if your not going to give them the freedom to express themselves. I think thats probably why Viv’ took her skills and went. Katie Kuhl’s been playing for Denmark since she was sixteen and she gets 3 minutes playing time. I say lets take the chains off and start playing in the old Arsenal way. At least we’ll be entertained.
I thought Lacasse was a really good player, but like so many players, she was messed about by Eidevall. Top managers like Emma Hayes and Bompastor give clarity to their teams. I feel sorry for KafajI. The bemused faces in the huddle after the Chelsea game show where the club is now. Eidevall is out of his depth.