Arsenal Women striker Stina Blackstenius 2022-23 Season in Review by Michelle
27 year old Swedish international Stina Blackstenius joined Arsenal Women in January 2022, from Swedish club BK Häcken, and has just finished her first full season for the club. Having played 39 times for our Gunners this season, Blackstenius has scored 18 goals.
18 goals in 2022/23 for @SBlackstenius 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Hrnoc62zVN
— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) June 12, 2023
I think there’s been a lot of pressure put on Blackstenius, particularly in the latter half of the season, with both Beth Mead & Vivianne Miedema suffering season-ending ACL injuries before the winter break. Between them Beth & Viv scored 66% of Arsenal Women’s goals in the previous season, so their injuries left a big void..
I have to admit to having had reservations about Blackstenius being the one to fill the void left by Beth & Viv’s injuries but she did slowly win me over. I don’t think anyone can fault her effort or commitment but maybe a few more goals would have been nice..
2023 didn’t start in the best way for Blackstenius either, and by her own admission she was “a little surprised” in the January transfer window when she was rumoured to be moving to Manchester United in a swap deal for English international Alessia Russo! That must have knocked her confidence somewhat but she rallied and actually had a great second half to the season, in my opinion.
Are you happy with Blackstenius going into next season leading the line? With Eidevall forecasting “a very big transfer window for us” and Arsenal being linked to Canadian international Cloe Lacasse, Portuguese international Tatiana Pinto, as well as ongoing interest in Manchester United’s Alessia Russo, Arsenal’s front-line armoury could be changing before our eyes in the coming months..
What are your thoughts on Blackstenius’ season?
Michelle Maxwell
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I must admit it took me a little time to be convinced by her but she worked really hard in and now lm a fan 😊
I think Stina had a hard start to the season but the way she finished the season was very impressive and had a fantastic second half to the season, I think she will go on to have a very good year from next season Stina stepped up to the plate and had a very good season a good world cup with Sweden can only give her confidence go Stina.
There are times when Stina looks like a top notch striker but, for me, there are far more times when she doesn’t seem to have the necessary self belief. She is also flagged offside far too often. I think she is a good, but not yet world class, striker and Im not convinced that we can win theWSL, let alone the Champions League with her leading the line. If I’m honest I would be happier with Russo, Bunny Shaw, Rachel Daly or Sam Kerr leading the line, all of whom seem, to my eyes, to have a higher chance conversion rate. I’ll be honest and say I haven’t checked those stats so I could well be proved wrong