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BOREHAMWOOD, England -- Arsenal were faced with their first major hurdle of their "one-club mentality" when two games -- the UEFA Women's Champions League fixture against Bayern Munich and the men's Carabao Cup game against Crystal Palace -- were both scheduled on the same night and both due to be played at the Emirates.
There was an opportunity for the club to make a statement by rearranging or moving the men's fixture, given the women's had been scheduled weeks before the men's game being confirmed. But that did not happen, and at a wet and windy Meadow Park on Wednesday, Arsenal women defeated Bayern Munich 3-2 to clinch top spot in Group C.
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The men's team staked their claim on the N5 stadium and duly beat Crystal Palace 3-2, forcing the women's team to appeal to UEFA to be granted special permission to play the decisive fixture at Meadow Park. There is no way of knowing whether the results would have turned out differently if the game had stayed at the Emirates, but the familiarity and intimacy of the environment certainly had an impact.
"Historically, Arsenal has been leading in pushing the development of women's football and I think it will do that in the future as well. This was a bump in the road, which will always happen," interim manager Renee Slegers said following the relocation announcement.
"It's like player development, you will not go up in a straight line, there will be challenges on the way. This is a challenge, but we're all very proud of what Arsenal tries to do to push women's football forward."
Meadow Park, which formally acted as Arsenal women's home prior to their move to the Emirates does not meet the governing body regulations for a group-stage fixture.
"[UEFA] have granted special dispensation for the match to be played there, given the unique combination of factors that required a new venue following our men's team's home draw in the Carabao Cup quarterfinal," a statement from the club read.
"We thank members of our supporter groups throughout this time who offered valuable feedback, which was reflected in our dialogue with UEFA. We also thank UEFA for their collaboration to find a workable outcome."
Mariona Caldentey, left, and Alessia Russo, right, celebrate Arsenal's winner against Bayern Munich on Wednesday. John Walton/PA Images via Getty Images
Arsenal could not alter the date or time of the fixture due to broadcast pairings. This situation was further complicated as the travelling team are obliged to be offered the chance to train on the pitch the day before the game, meaning Arsenal could not play on Dec. 19 instead. The men's team could have conceded hosting the fixture or attempted to appeal to move the Carabao Cup game to another date. But that may not have made any difference to the outcome for either team.
The women's team have made Emirates their home since the 2024-25 season, playing all but three Women's Super League and Champions League fixtures at the main stadium. Prior to the current season, Arsenal hosted handfuls of matches at the Emirates, including all continental group-stage games in the 2022-23 season.
While the Emirates possesses top-quality facilities compared to Meadow Park's non-league set-up, this is arguably the only downside to the fixture relocation. The intimate nature of Borehamwood will have served as a benefit for the home team, with the atmosphere drenched with home support and the small ground meaning fans' chanting and singing could be heard from all stands, including the dugout and on the pitch.
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This has been a driving factor behind Arsenal's success at the Hertfordshire ground as pointed out by defender Steph Catley. It was arguably one of the reasons Arsenal rebounded to make the score 2-2 after Magdalena Eriksson's second goal was levelled through Alessia Russo, within a minute of Bayern taking the lead and Mariona Caldentey slotting home the decisive penalty to the roars of the devoted fans.
"I think what's positive about Borehamwood is that we're so close to the fans," Catley told a news conference the day prior to the game. "It's a very intimate place to be. So I think we get that extra connection. We're very close to each other. So that's positive for tomorrow from a facilities perspective.
"Obviously, the Emirates has all the space. There's room for everything, there's technology, and that's different than Borehamwood, but we've been doing that for such a long time, and we have a good process in place for tomorrow as well."
There were far fewer fans than initially expected for the final game of 2024, though. Sources told ESPN that 7,500 tickets were sold for the match before it was delisted from the website following the announcement of the relocation. The game remained absent from the website until the move to Borehamwood was confirmed.
Meadow Park only carries a capacity of 4,500, so the club were forced to refund all tickets purchased and gave supporters a 24-hour priority window to buy a new ticket. Yet there still would have been plenty of fans planning on heading to the Emirates who were unable to attend the Wednesday evening fixture.
The celebrations at the final whistle were emphatic. Not only had Arsenal secured top spot in their Champions League group, but it was a statement win, toppling the side that derailed them 5-2 in the reverse fixture. Arsenal may not have made a statement with the location of the fixture, but the team ensured their win did all the talking.
Arsenal remain unbeaten in 11 games to end 2024, with 10 wins since the 5-2 defeat and 2-1 loss to Chelsea that sparked the resignation of former boss Jonas Eidevall.
Under Slegers, the team have been undefeated, and while fans will have to wait until the new year to know whether the Dutch coach will stay in the role permanently, the ending to 2024 could not be more different to the bleak outlook that clouded the team just over two months ago.