All hail Katie McCabe and her brilliant display as Arsenal won the Champions League on Saturday night.The Kilnamanagh girl is the fourth Irish winner of the competition and hers was a particularly accomplished display.Reward for a 29 year-old who has spent the best part of a decade in the Gunners dressing room and making over 160 appearances in that time, establishing herself as one of the most respected professionals in the WSL.Irish fans may be more familiar with McCabe as the Ireland women's team soccer captain where there have been 96 caps and 29 goals, a forceful presence, combative and resourceful in adversity.But there was a calculated display at left-back for Arsenal against Barcelona on Saturday night as they worked off the lesser amount of possession before Stina Blackstenius gave them a 74th minute lead. Something which led to Barcelona throwing bodies into the attack and Arsenal being forced to see off quarter-of-an-hour of concerted pressure, albeit with resilience and unwavering discipline.McCabe's importance at this point was highlighted and, indeed, as legendary Ireland star Olivia O'Toole points out, her achievement is remarkable.There are those who have gone before, O'Toole herself, Anne O'Brien, Louise Quinn and Niamh Fahey who have been outstanding but McCabe, in taking her chance as presented by the modern game, has proven herself a star.
"There are more opportunities in the game right now," says O'Toole, a former Olympic torchbearer. "Anne O'Brien was way ahead of her time, she would have made any of the Women's Super League teams that are there today.
Republic of Ireland vs Italy - Olivia O'Toole celebrates scoring her 50th goal for Ireland (Image: ©INPHO/Lorraine O'Sullivan)
"And if you asked me Louise Quinn and Niamh Fahey, if they had been in this time - and remember both were with Arsenal when they were young players - they would have had the skills to be in Arsenal Champions League set up today."Right now though, McCabe can reflect on a job well done in Lisbon in front of an estimated 5,000 traveling Arsenal fans among the 38,356 attendance"Katie's key contribution and her defending in particular was outstanding, she had the player she was marking in her pocket and her distribution also stood out for me."Because while Katie is quick, has pace, it is not her greatest asset, it is her reading of the game that gives her so much time, you can see it, and it is what makes her so good when she gets the ball."She saw one outstanding pass at one point and completed it inch perfect. There are very, very few players in the world who have seen that pass that quickly and delivered it the way she did."As I say, what's really world class about her is she is a step ahead in her mind, she already knows what she is going to do with th ball before she actually gets onto it."There is also a will to win, a force of nature that comes naturally."There is great passion when she plays, I don't mind when people say that she is like Roy Keane."Sure, sometimes you might be watching a game and you are worried she is going to have a strop and kick-off."But then sometimes we've seen games with Ireland where things have been a bit sluggish and not going our way and, remember she is the captain, she might kick-off to try and get things spark something."That wasn't needed in the Champions League final, she knew it wasn't about her and I was impressed by her discipline, it was all about the team and great players understand important games and moments like that."We saw this to great effect in that last 15 minutes when Barcelona came on strong which was something I was expecting because we'd seen all through the Champions League that the European teams seem fitter, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Barcelona.
"I don't why but you would expect English teams to be fitter as a rule but Arsenal staying in the game right to the end, almost as if it was an early season game, surprised me a little because I remember they were given a run around by Lyon at the beginning of an earlier game."
As it stands, Arsenal see McCabe as a dedicated left-back and while there has been some questions as to whether she has been used effectively by Ireland in the past, O'Toole has no hesitation:"I think she would be a great left-sided midfielder, I'd move her further forward."In the case of Ireland, I'd put Anna Patten, Aoife Mannion and Izzy Atkinson - she has to step up now - in behind so that would allow Katie move forward to where she can get into attack as well."I wouldn't be inclined to put her into the central midfield role for instance. I thought she looked absolutely lost when she played there against Slovenia."If I was manager I'd much prefer to have Katie as an attacking midfielder but with distinct defensive duties. I'd have a player behind her as cover, at left-back, so we could get the best out of her going forward."Meanwhile the women's game is continuing to grow apace and while this generation of players has broken out into mainstream, professionalism and has a highly organised World Cup every four years, the looming spin off and opportunity will fall for a new generation of coaches."Every one of the Ireland girls are doing their badges, I see Lily Agg is now down to do her 'A' license. I'd say the very near future will see all of the WSL clubs featuring women's coaches," continues O'Toole who has a podcast, Girls In The Game, doing very well out there."While it goes without saying there will be more coming through to coach in the League of Ireland and the schoolgirls teams which will be super for the game here."It is great for us to get young girls playing any sport but this rise and rise of excellent women coaches will be good for soccer, an important thing because there are opportunities opening up.
"We are seeing the standard Katie is playing at, seeing there are opportunities at clubs in leagues all over Europe, there are American colleges and scholarships."
Saturday was also a pleasure.
"But it is also all about the game as a game, one I watched at home on my own partly because some of my mates were away but also because I knew if I went to the pub I would hardly get to see it all all.
"It looked as good as the men's Champions League in terms of the buzz around the occasion and the presentation was good, the analysts had done their homework and that was great to see.
"And I can't have been alone in thinking the referee handled the game very well. I notice Arsenal and the the WSL as well doesn't have the culture of diving around and screaming after every contact that the English Premier has.
"And the referee wasn't taking anything from Barcelona when they were going to ground a bit too easy at times.
"In this, we are watching Katie McCabe there on the football stage at the highest level, in what was a great game, that was just fantastic. Absolutely fantastic."
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