Good morning, Arsenal Women aficionados!
Some goals are not just goals, they are something more than the ball hitting the back of the net. There are circumstances when scoring a goal can change the whole narrative for a player, or for a team. Sometimes for both.
Cloé Lacasse last gasp wonder strike against Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village might well be one of those.
Sure, it only rescued a point, but the magnitude of this goal should not be underestimated because a loss against Manchester United could have virtually ended our quest for the title and derailed further our season.
Despite this being only the second game of the season, another defeat – especially against a direct rival – would have had terrible consequences for our title challenge, because no team has ever won the league losing more than two matches and having two losses in the two opening games would have left us with an impossible task ahead.
Drawing at Leigh Sports Village leaves us within touching distance from both Chelsea and Manchester United, who are both with four points from their first two games, and gives Jonas Eidevall’s team a lifeline to challenge for the top spot.
This goal will also have a great effect on Cloé Lacasse, the player tasked with replacing Beth Mead on the right-hand side of our attack and bringing the same kind of energy and directness. The Canadian, who arrived from Benfica on the back of a sensational season, was yet to open her goal scoring account for the Gunners and was dropped to the bench in the revolution that saw Jonas Eidevall replace five players in the starting lineup, compared to those who played against Liverpool, last week. I cannot think of a better way to claim back a place in the starting lineup than cannoning the ball to the top corner in the dying seconds of a big match, so hopefully this will give Lacasse a big boost for the remaining of the season.
The game at Leigh Sports Village was a lively one, with both teams quite aggressive and open from the very start. We took a deserved lead through Stina Blackstenius, who ran away from her marker after being released by Steph Catley through the left and calmly slotted the ball past Mary Earps, but then Manchester United got back on level when Sabrina D’Angelo completely missed her clearance, leaving Galton with the easiest of the tap-ins.
From that moment onwards, the hosts seemed to be on top of the visitors, creating dangerous situations from set-pieces and dead-ball situations, while Kim Little & Co. found it difficult to circulate the ball effectively. Well into the second half and not until Jonas Eidevall’s triple substitution, Manchester United looked the most likely to score and run away with the three points, but the balance shifted once Frida Maanum, Katie McCabe and Caitlin Foord entered the frame and brought a new sense of urgency to the team. Alessia Russo became more involved and had two big chances to turn the game in our favor again, but Mary Earps and the post denied her.
Then, we conceded another rather comical goal and we looked doomed: Amanda Ilestedt and Sabrina D’Angelo didn’t communicate when World Cup golden-boot Miyazawa headed the ball towards the box, allowing Melard to take a smart touch to push it over the line. Both players yelled at each other, throw their arms in the air, and blamed one another, a poor showing in terms of accountability.
At that point, with five minutes to go, it looked difficult to find a way back for our players, and we were heading to another defeat and a real possibility that this season would end prematurely.
My mind went straight to the announcement that Jonas Eidevall’s contract was extended for another three seasons, and I start thinking at the backlash for such decision – maybe not the decision itself but its timing. On one side, having tied him down on a long contract would have brushed away any rumor or whisper of sacking and dismissal, but on the other hand it would have put the club’s hierarchy under heavy scrutiny, very early in this campaign.
Potentially, the decision could have looked more disruptive than anything else.
Then, Cloé Lacasse struck gold.
The Canadian danced away from her marker with a sublime trick, then unleashed a gem of a shot and found the top corner, rescuing a vital and deserved point for the hosts.
We were seconds away from losing a game that we should have never lost, a game that we would have probably won if we managed to keep some composure and calm, but at least we didn’t lose.
Truth is that things will not improve unless we find a better balance at the back and stop giving away the ball in dangerous areas – or giving away goals. With Leah Williamson still far away from match fitness and Rafaelle gone, we lack true leadership and composure at the back, which is there for everyone to see. At present, we have too many players playing well below their standards, starting from both goalkeepers, which that’s probably why tried hard to struck a deal to bring Mary Earps to North London, but Lotte Wubben-Moy, Amanda Ilestedt and Laia Codina aren’t exactly shining, either.
We need to find a way to navigate our way until the next international break, but the home game against Aston Villa is not the easiest we could have hoped for and will carry a lot of unnecessary pressure. We still look one defeat away from a disaster and the situation won’t change until we manage to put together a string of wins and convincing performances, especially at the back. If there is a good time to show why he is considered as one of the brightest tacticians in Europe, it is now, so I hope that Jonas Eidevall has some solutions up his sleeve.
We will talk again next week, after the home game against Aston Villa and I hope it will be a very different kind of conversation.
Speak to you soon!
Italian living in Switzerland, Gooner since mid-nineties, when the Gunners defeated my hometown team, in Copenhagen. I started my own blog and podcast (www.clockenditalia.com) after after some experiences with Italian websites and football magazines. Covering Arsenal Women with the occasional rant about the boys.
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