When the final whistle sounded at a rain soaked Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Arsenal captain Leah Williamson sprinted to the away end and leapt punching the air. Nearly 4,000 Arsenal fans travelled to see a team who had not won a WSL game since the opening day of the season. Before the game, Renee Slegers was clear that playing for the fans was a significant objective today.
That message was repeated in Slegers’ post-match press conference. ‘We said that we were gonna play for the fans today and I said that externally, we’ve said that internally as well, we were playing for them and we connected with them before the warm up. I’m just so happy that they got the reward as well. They come here and they sell out the away section, they come to the game in the rain and they sing us and fight us through the game.
‘Because at the end it’s scrappy and it’s game management and it’s scenarios and they’re all with us. So I’m so happy that they get the reward today too.’ Football, very broadly, is a game of strategy and emotion. In some games, the dial between those two elements moves. This was a result and a game that was far more about energy and emotion than it was perfectly executed or flowing football.
Spurs are a team that presses very aggressively, the weather made for a greasy surface. It was never going to be a game for the purist. Arsenal’s form has been in the drain for some time, they needed a result. Everything else can wait, because none of the manager’s strategic or tactical ambitions are going to happen without some confidence.
Slegers’ team selection had a strong back to basics feel to it. Lotte Wubben-Moy and Ona Batlle came out and Steph Catley and Taylor Hinds came into defence. Two left footers on the left side of the defence. Birmingham’s goal at Emirates Stadium last weekend had its roots, in my view, in two right footers being at the wrong body angle as Birmingham broke.
When a game is going to be scrappy and transitional, you want Caitlin Foord, who battled and scrapped and competed for every single ball. Olivia Smith started upfront with Alessia Russo behind her. Arsenal’s two best shooters and finishers played centrally. Without their two best technical players in Little and Mariona, Arsenal went back to basics and tried to be as uncomplicated as possible.
Energy and confidence have been low and Slegers tried to use the energy of a North London derby as a catalyst. A decision was made to host the pre-game shooting practice next to the away fans. Slegers said the post-match huddle was cancelled so the players could celebrate with supporters. ‘Actions speak louder than words, there was not much more talking to do,’ Slegers said afterwards.
I think Arsenal have been in ‘get a win and sort the rest out later’ territory for some weeks. They used some intangibles today to secure that aim, they simplified the team selection and strategy and now they have a foot on the ladder. ‘I think it is good we have a lot of games,’ Slegers said afterwards, ‘So we need to pack this one away and get the next win because the next game comes soon.’
This was a foot on the ladder and Arsenal addressed the occasion like a team who knew they needed to play the occasion almost as much as the game. Without Kim Little and Mariona the chances of a technical masterclass were reduced anyway, with confidence low they needed to find a way to power their way to a win. It wasn’t pretty but they did it. It was a drawing board win, the rest has to flow now. They used the energy, now they need to channel the positive emotion.