Eidevall knows Arsenal Women need to get it right against Wolfsburg, despite injuries

Eidevall knows Arsenal Women need to get it right against Wolfsburg, despite injuries by Michelle

Before losing 1-0 to Manchester United, Arsenal were in a position where they could have been favourites to win the WSL title or, at the very least, give reigning champions and arch London rivals Chelsea, a run for their money.

However, now the position they are in is that even if they win all their remaining games, winning the league title isn’t dependent on their results but rather dependent on their main title rivals, Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City dropping points.

There was a growing ambition for Arsenal to try and win both the WSL league and the Champions League – perhaps bringing home a double or a treble this season, after their Conti Cup win. But now Jonas Eidevall and his team have no control over the WSL title race; what they can control is their fate in the Champions League.

Arsenal have to beat Wolfsburg when the two sides clash in the Champions League semi-finals this Sunday. Considering the injuries Arsenal have to deal with, it may be too much to ask our Gunners to run riot against the German side, but they have no choice if they are to add another trophy to their 2022–23 campaign, now that winning the WSL title is complicated, at best.

Fortunately, Arsenal already have their minds set on getting something from the game this weekend, as Eidevall admitted after the Manchester United loss via Arseblog: “You need to be process oriented. It is about focusing on what we need to perform. It is a very different game, it is over two legs and we will have some other players available. There will be some coming in and some out due to squad registration rules. We need to use every hour we have to refresh but to take good decisions about what the starting eleven is going to be.”

Wolfsburg as a side are no joke; in their last 3 games, they’ve beaten Werder Bremen 8-0, Bayern Munich 5-0, and Duisburg 3-0. Arsenal’s defence will need to be as keen as ever, but their attack, to get past Wolfsburg’s defensive block, will need to be second to none.

Arsenal need to beat Wolfsburg on Sunday, not because it will be easy – it is a certainty that it won-t – but because they have no choice but to do so.. Can our Gunners do it? What a mountain they have to cllmb..