Preview – Liverpool host Arsenal Women as Gunners aim to return to the top

Eidevall Match Preview on Arsenal Women WSL clash with Liverpool By Michelle

After Arsenal´s 5-1 away win over Lyon, boss Jonas Eidevall talks about Arsenal´s upcoming Women´s Super League clash away at Liverpool´s Prenton Park on Sunday afternoon.  Arsenal will be aiming to extend their unbeaten start to the campaign and retake there place at the top of the WSL, after slipping into 2nd place to Manchester United (on goal difference).

At the pre-match press conference ahead of the weekend’s game here´s what Jonas Eidevall had to say on Arsenal.com:

Are the team still on a high after Lyon win:

No, you have to go back quickly to reality. It was a very memorable night it was a great performance from us but we’re not going to be entitled to anything extra for that moving forward, so we need to prepare, recover and refresh so we can play against Liverpool on Sunday.

How he assesses Liverpool in the WSL so far this season:

You could clearly see last season that they were a very good side in the Championship, they came up with a clear identity and were well-organised. They have players and a coach that know what level will be expected from them and we all saw in the opening weekend against Chelsea what the team is capable of. We know we have to put in a strong performance.

Liverpool’s playing style this season:

I think there’s been a mixture in flexibility in the way they play, both with the players that they are fielding themselves but also in aspects to the opponents. I know Matt has spoken before our game here now that he’s not happy with the way they have been starting games, so we have to see what that means in what ways they’re going to change, but we expect Liverpool to be a very hard-working team. We saw them against Chelsea as very effective in both set-pieces and counter-attack.

On utilising the momentum from the Lyon result:

It’s always about what motivates you to go forward and it’s always a balancing act. Sometimes it’s about knowing what reality looks like when we have had a really good result, but the same thing when we’ve had a really bad result. It’s about finding a way forward and acting with self-confidence but also with humility, and keeping those two things balanced.

I feel that this group is very balanced and we’re very happy with what we did in France but we’re not getting carried away, that’s the feeling I have. That makes it easier going into here because I don’t feel like I need to downplay or up-play any part of it, but it’s up to us now with actions on the pitch to really show that we are prepared for Sunday.

Whether he watched Liverpool’s game against Chelsea:

Of course, we have seen that and all their other games as well. It’s a very good strategy if you can frustrate opponents, we try to do that also. Sometimes we don’t want them to have the ball and they get frustrated and they try to go after it and we can exploit that in their defence. I think there are many ways you can frustrate an opponent and that’s part of carrying out an effective gameplan, so we have to respect that.

Liverpool will be aiming to bounce back from a narrow 1-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend and hoping to produce a repeat of their season-opening victory over reigning WSL champions Chelsea.  Indeed “These are the games we want to be playing in,” was the message from Liverpool boss Matt Beard as he previewed Liverpool FC Women’s hosting of Arsenal. Source: “These are the games we want to be playing in,” was the message from Matt Beard as he previewed Liverpool FC Women’s hosting of Arsenal.

Eidevall has not yet released his starting line-up but Rafaelle Souza and Leah Williamson are still expected to be out with foot injuries for several more weeks.  Jonas has a wealth of players to draw on however, with a number of his players yet to get off the bench this season.  Miedema, Nobbs and Hurtig all got off the bench in the final 15 minutes of their UWCL clash with Lyon.  Our thoughts on Arsenal Women possible starting lineup:

Zinsberger; Wienroither, Wubben-Moy, Catley, McCabe; Little, Maanum, Miedema; Mead, Foord, Blackstenius

Michelle Maxwell

Follow Michelle on Just Gooner Women on Twitter for regular updates on the Arsenal Women´s Team!

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