Thomas Partey was left out of the Ghana side today as they drew 1-1 with Angola in an African Cup of Nations qualifier.

The Arsenal midfielder played the full 90 minutes of the previous game, also against Angola, but was left on the bench as they did not want to exacerbate what were described as ‘small injury issues’.

Speaking to the press afterwards, manager Chris Hughton said, “Thomas has some small injury issues. We felt it was too big a risk to start him.”

It obviously remains to be seen how this might impact Arsenal as we prepare for the run-in, resuming on Saturday against Leeds.

The club sent physio Simon Murphy with the 29 year old on his international duty, perhaps concerned about some ongoing aches and strains, and he will be assessed on his return to London.

We need as many fit and healthy bodies for this title push, and having already lost Takehiro Tomiyasu for the rest of the season, the last thing Mikel Arteta will want is to lose a key midfielder.

The former Atletico Madrid man has had a chequered history with injury since his arrival in North London, let’s hope this one isn’t serious.

A goal for England under-21s in their 4-0 win over France on Saturday night served as a timely reminder of Emile Smith Rowe’s prowess in the penalty box as he looks to get back into the reckoning at Arsenal for the final 10 matches of the season.

A long-standing groin injury proved particularly problematic for the midfielder throughout 2022, restricting his time on the pitch until the decision was taken in September to undergo surgery.

Expectations were high that he’d be able to hit the ground running on his return in January but a small setback and the form of his teammates have continued to restrict his game time. Since the turn of the year, he’s played just 63 minutes in the Premier League.

After hitting double figures for the Gunners during the last campaign, it’s barely believable Smith Rowe is closing in on a year without a goal on the domestic front.

It’s been a period to forget but the Arsenal number 10 is focused on making a difference in the coming months for club and country.

“I’ve never had surgery before so at the start I was quite worried because I didn’t know what was going to happen,” he told The Athletic. “I didn’t know if I was going to be the same after it.”

A header by @emilesmithrowe at the back post to give our #YoungLions the lead! pic.twitter.com/1VMuR8lAuW

— England (@England) March 25, 2023

He added: “This is my last season with the England under-21s so I need to make sure I’m playing. I need to be getting minutes, scoring and assisting as much as I can.

“Obviously my aim is to get back into the Arsenal team, too. I’m desperate to be playing because the team are doing really well and it’s something I want to be a part of.

“For me, I’ve got to stay fit now for when the manager needs me. I know the team is on fire and they’re doing really well.

“I’ve never been in this position, being left out so often, but I’m trying to work as hard as I can so I’m ready to perform.”

After Arsenal’s 5-1 victory over Tottenham on Saturday, Jonas Eidevall picked out Victoria Pelova for special praise. “A player like Victoria Pelova is very important for us today, both in the way she plays defence but also because the way she keeps possession and sets up attacks for us.” The Dutch schemer had probably her strongest game in a Gunners shirt, playing on the right side of the attack.

What is interesting is that in Pelova’s last three games on the right, it has been Noelle Maritz behind her at right-back. On Tuesday night in Munich, Maritz started at left-back but when Pelova was introduced on the hour mark, Maritz shifted over to the right. Let’s look more closely at Pelova’s performance in the North London derby.

Pelova is on point from the first second. As Spurs take kickoff, Summanen rolls the ball back to Angharad James who is looking to immediately hit Beth England in the left channel.

Pelova reads it like a book and cuts it out.

She then finds a good pass on the left side to Caitlin Foord, Spurs have overloaded their left because they are expecting an early attack through Beth England. Instead, they are on the back foot in the first three seconds of the game. Arsenal end up with a throw in deep in Tottenham territory.

It’s a marginal gain but having centre gives a team the chance to dictate the territory in the early moments of the game. Pelova’s interception not only wrestles that advantage away from Spurs but gives it to Arsenal and sets the tone for what is to come. This is especially important as teams can often be sluggish in the opening stages following a European away fixture in midweek and Spurs would have been banking on that being the case. Pelova’s alertness takes away two relatively minor marginal gains from Tottenham in the opening seconds of the game and now Arsenal have the opponent under pressure right from the off.

Here we see another example of Pelova’s work ethic. Drew Spence takes a loose touch on the halfway line and Pelova’s eyes light up.

Angharad James rushes across to try to bail Spence out but Pelova is strong and wins the 50-50, retaining the ball at her feet in the process. ‘Regain and retain’ is a favoured refrain of coaches. It isn’t just about winning challenges but, when you can, winning them in such a way that the ball stays under your control.

From here, she drives towards the left flank.

Then releases a good, angled pass to Foord on the left.

Pelova showed a willingness to stretch the game in wide areas too. Here she motions to Kim Little to play a pass in behind when Little has the ball in the centre circle.

Unfortunately for Arsenal, Spurs left-back Kerrys Harrop just gets a slight touch on Little’s cross field pass to prevent Pelova from being through on goal.

But Pelova doesn’t just allow the ball to drift out for a corner, she runs to retrieve it and finds this underlapping run from Maritz in the area. Arsenal win a corner from this situation.

We see something very similar here a few minutes later. Little has the ball in the centre circle and Pelova immediately signals for it to go in behind.

On this occasion there is a twist though, Pelova’s run takes Harrop inside and opens up the flank for Maritz’s run.

Maritz is able to deliver a dangerous cross from here and Blackstenius’ eventual shot is blocked for a corner.

Spurs threaten a rare break here with Harrop and Ayane is making a run behind Maritz on that flank. Pelova has already spotted it and is busting a lung to track back.

The Dutchwoman gets back and forces Ayane to miscontrol and Arsenal have a throw-in. Had she not tracked the run with such determination, Spurs would have found themselves in a good situation.

From the resulting throw-in, Wälti touches the ball to Pelova in a tight space with her back to goal.

Pelova turns out of trouble and delivers a cross-field ball to Foord and the Australian accepts the pass and scores to make it 2-0.

She just loves scoring against Spurs!@CaitlinFoord #WomensFootballWeekend pic.twitter.com/hPcfkc5CLV

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

Pelova should immediately have had a goal to her name too. As Arsenal win the ball back in midfield and Maanum drives into space, Pelova, who was always pretty central when the ball was on Arsenal’s left, instantly smells an opportunity and has her skates on.

She runs into space and gives Maanum a simple option to put her through on goal.

However, she doesn’t quite take the ball in her stride on her right foot, the ball ends up on her left foot and she has to dig out the finish and Korpela saves. Pelova really ought to score here.

It was Pelova’s alertness that really stood out in this game, as Williamson surveys her options with the ball at centre-back, Pelova is willing to make a sharp, sudden movement away from the right side- she can see that Noelle Maritz is already hugging the touchline so she feels liberated to bolt into the half space.

The angle doesn’t open up instantaneously; so Pelova moves again and motions for Williamson to play the ball into space.

Now she has the ball in a dangerous position and turns. Spurs were reasonably well set a couple of seconds ago but Pelova changed that with her willingness to move into space quickly and demand the ball. From this move, Blackstenius gets a shot off- albeit she loses her footing as she does so.

This is the build-up to Arsenal’s second half penalty. Pelova can see that Blackstenius wants to run that right channel so she has the intelligence to move away and drag Harrop with her to clear the space by drifting towards Maritz in possession. It also gives Maritz a secondary option of using Pelova with the pass if she needs to.

Maritz does indeed attempt the braver pass, however. Harrop is late to realise that Pelova’s run is a decoy and she starts to run back but that piece of movement from Pelova has just created enough space for Blackstenius to run into.

From this position, Blackstenius crosses, McCabe arrives late at the back post and wins Arsenal a penalty.

Pelova helps herself to an assist for the fourth goal where she demonstrates skill and tenacity. She collects the pass from Wienroither here.

And takes a wonderful touch to get away from two Spurs defenders.

Spurs get players around her and look as though they will defend the situation but Pelova just will not give up the ghost and fights to keep it.

She scraps to keep her body between the ball and Angharad James and keep the attack alive.

When Pelova touches the ball back to Wienroither, the Austrian’s cross is blocked and Victoria is, once again, the first player to react, running towards the ricochet.

She chops the ball back past James and then hits a left-footed cross to the back post for Foord to control and score.

Caitlin Foord just loves the North London Derby #WomensFootballWeekend @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/fYzNFXpt8F

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

It was a just reward for her performance where she came away with two assists and really ought to have had a goal. But what really stood out was her alertness and her work rate. In many situations in this game, Pelova was the first player to react or the player to provoke with her movement. It was a strong display from the Dutch international.

Offt they do have families, Pelova pic.twitter.com/rwUc380615

— Belinda (@maanumitstwitta) March 26, 2023

Jodie Taylor made her second Arsenal debut in the 5-1 win over Spurs on Saturday, coming on as an 82nd minute substitute for Stina Blackstenius. Jodie spoke to the press after the match, the first three questions are from Arseblog News.

On how surreal it has been to sign for Arsenal again out of the blue…
“That’s football for you, anything can happen. It has been a crazy ten days. I was chilling in LA, training hard and waiting for an opportunity and trying to be ready for it. It’s very surreal but I am just thrilled to be here. So happy to be part of the team and to have got on in a convincing win.”

On playing in the WSL again after a six year absence…
“It felt like a real football game, I have been keeping tabs on the league since I left and it has gone from strength to strength. It is great to see the growth of the game, especially off the back of the Euros. It was really great to be pitchside. It is so good to be a part of it.”

On whether Jonas has spoken to her about her role for the remainder of the season…
“He hasn’t really said anything! I think purposefully he wants me to play my game and settle in before having that sort of discussion. Like I said, I landed ten days ago so it’s been a crazy time. I was really happy to get on today and help the team. However the team needs me I am here for it. It’s a great opportunity for me to come back on home soil I am still fit and healthy and capable of playing at this level and it’s great to get an opportunity at such a big club. I know there are injuries and there are a lot of games. However, Jonas sees my role to help us win trophies, I am totally here for it.”

On working with a personal coach over the last four months…
“It is tough because I had already been in an off-season so it’s been an extended off-season, unfortunately I haven’t played a game in a while. But I have been staying fit, a lot of running, a lot of conditioning, a lot of gym and individual training and small group stuff. It doesn’t quite mimic a game but I did the best I possibly could. A lot of individual work in front of goal, keeping my body right and working on a few things in front of goal- as much as you can possibly do on your own! I have done small group stuff, hopefully that prepares me well for this step.”

On passing on her experience to her teammates…
“The longer you stay in the game, the more you try to pass your experience onto other players. I have enjoyed that as I have got to the late stages of my career. I am a team player, I love being in a team, I just want to see my team do well. I am still fit and healthy, I can still play and I think that’s an important message to older players as well, it’s not over till it’s over- I am still going. I am just so happy to be here and the squad have really welcomed me. I know a lot of players from the past, I played with Caitlin Foord nine years ago! I have been on three teams now with Steph Catley, there is a handful of girls who were here when i played here five years ago. The new girls and the staff have all been amazing at integrating me and making me feel welcome.

Arsenal were 5-1 winners away at Tottenham in the WSL on Saturday afternoon with goals from Stina Blackstenius, a brace from Caitlin Foord, a Kim Little goal and a goal from Frida Maanum. Jonas Eidevall spoke to the press post-match, the first three questions are from Arseblog News.

On the details they changed at half-time to produce a completely dominant second half…
We went into a static way in the last 10 or 15 minutes of the first half. They changed the way they pressed with two forwards and then they had a block with eight players, we didn’t engage that block well enough or utilise the width well enough so we had to change our positioning a bit. Once we did that in the second half, our performance was very dominant and I was very pleased with that.

What a goal

A rocket from Blackstenius #WomensFootballWeekend @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/izU02HmPm0

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

On familiar patterns emerging in attack again…
I think you can see we look sharper and better in that again. That comes with time together, on the training pitch and playing matches together and integrating new players. A player like Victoria Pelova is very important for us today, both in the way she plays defence but also because the way she keeps possession and sets up attacks for us.

It was nice to see from a squad perspective that we changed the goalkeeper and we see the strengths Sabrina has with her communication and her distribution. That is really important for us as a squad to have that option. We have Lotte Wubben-Moy as well and she plays a very strong game today. That is important for us because it keeps the energy levels high and we have the competition in the squad so everyone needs to be on their toes.

She just loves scoring against Spurs!@CaitlinFoord #WomensFootballWeekend pic.twitter.com/hPcfkc5CLV

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

On Stina Blackstenius’ performance...
It is so important to see development with players and you see how we develop players, Stina has really improved holding up the ball and using her physicality. I like that she took the finish on the first touch, seeing the goalkeeper is out of position, that is really good awareness. It was a strong performance.

Captain Kim steps up from the spot!#WomensFootballWeekend @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/QaMgAabbAP

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

On the importance of the early goal…
It is always nice to score early, especially it was important because of the way we scored it. We know with this pitch is not the Allianz Arena! It was hard to play between the lines if it is too compact but you could see how we were constantly stretching them and that is where it comes from. It was a good way to start the game.

Caitlin Foord just loves the North London Derby #WomensFootballWeekend @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/fYzNFXpt8F

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

On whether there is any idea on the severity of the injury to Gio…
Not at all yet.

On the level of focus with the game between the two legs of the Bayern tie…
I think that is what you need to do, you can’t prioritise one or the other. We are at a stage in the league is so competitive, so you need to do your very best to win these games. An away game here is always going to be a challenge. Bayern is in the same situation, they are playing Wolfsburg today, they can’t exactly take it easy. It’s two teams with tough games and we’ll be ready to go on a slightly better pitch on Wednesday.

What a strike from @FMaanum #WomensFootballWeekend @ArsenalWFC pic.twitter.com/JHmAEejhsV

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 25, 2023

On the importance of boosting the goal difference…
It is important from a mentality perspective, we are a team that likes to express ourselves so why would we stop doing that? One of our values is to be 100% all the time no matter the situation. Sometimes that is when you are having tough times but it is also when you are doing well and not to become complacent or start acting in a different way, it doesn’t matter if we are winning 4-1, when we are representing Arsenal, let’s be 100% and make the moment of every second. It is a way of showing the pride in the jersey.

On the mixture of goal scorers…
That is good, hopefully we go into Wednesday’s game with a good level of self confidence and we should have that. Against Chelsea in the Conti Cup we were very strong, then against Liverpool and Reading we were very good, our second half performance against Bayern was very, very good and now here today also strong. This is not a team who have only had one or two strong performances, we are building good momentum coming into these games against Bayern Munich and City. Now it is up to us to execute.

14.D’Angelo; 16.Maritz (26.Wienroither ‘65), 6.Williamson, 3.Wubben-Moy, 15.McCabe; 13.Walti (2.Rafaelle ‘65), 10.Little(c), 12.Maanum (22.Kuhl ‘82); 21.Pelova, 19.Foord (20.Gio ‘77); 25.Blackstenius (27.Taylor ‘82).

Unused subs: 1.Zinsberger, 5.Beattie, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese.

Sabrina D’Angelo will start in goal for Arsenal this afternoon ahead of Manu Zinsberger as Jonas Eidevall makes three changes from the team that lost 1-0 at Bayern Munich on Tuesday night with the second leg to come on Wednesday.

Victoria Pelova comes in for Laura Wienroither with Katie McCabe moving to left-back while Lotte Wubben-Moy gets the nod at centre-half with Rafaelle on the bench.

Noelle Maritz will play at right-back with Williamson, Wubben-Moy and McCabe completing the back line. Lia Walti, Kim Little and Frida Maanum start in midfield, while Caitlin Foord and Victoria Pelova will play either side of Stina Blackstenius upfront.

The game is being broadcast live on Sky Showcase in the UK.

1.Zinsberger; 16.Maritz, 6.Williamson, 3.Wubben-Moy, 15.McCabe; 13.Walti, 10.Little(c), 12.Maanum; 21.Pelova, 19.Foord; 25.Blackstenius.

Subs: 1.Zinsberger, 2.Rafaelle, 5.Beattie, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese, 20.Gio, 22.Kuhl, 26.Wienroither, 27.Taylor

Arsenal’s trip to Newcastle United will be played on Sunday 7 May, a day later than originally scheduled, after it was selected for broadcast in the UK by Sky Sports.

The match at St James’ Park – our penultimate away game of the season – will kick off at 4.30 pm UK time. Manchester City will host Leeds United in the 2pm slot.

In a statement, the Premier League apologised for rearranging the fixture so late and pointed blame at the coronation of King Charles III which takes place that weekend.

“The Premier League apologises to supporters for the delay in announcing these fixtures and understands fans’ frustrations. Finalising these particular broadcast selections took longer than expected due to complications around the scheduling on the weekend of the Coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort.”

The Gunners’ home match with Brighton and the trip to Nottingham Forest – currently planned for 13 & 20 May respectively) could also get moved in the next couple of weeks.

TV selections for those matches will be made on 6 and 14 April.

The final game of the season against Wolves at Emirates Stadium is locked in for a 4.30 pm start on 28 May.

14 members of Arsenal’s first team squad are currently away on international duty and a few of them have been speaking to the media.

While most of the questions relate to their responsibilities with their countries, there’s genuine intrigue about life at Arsenal and what it’s like working with Mikel Arteta.

Here’s what Messrs Odegaard, Zinchenko, Trossard and Turner have been saying…
__

Martin Odegaard

Speaking to TV2 about his manager’s attention to detail…

It has surprised me, actually. How detail-oriented he and the whole team are. I’ve never encountered anything like it, with people who see football that way and who see details as specifically as he does. It can be simple little things or more big things. It’s extremely detailed and a lot of little things we talk about, watching video after every game and all that. It’s fun working with him and the team. It works
__

Oleksandr Zinchenko

Speaking to the Mail about his relationship with the boss…

I remember when Mikel was leaving City (in 2019). I didn’t hold my emotions. I couldn’t because this guy was so special to me. He taught me a lot. As a human being he was incredible and the way he was working with us young players after every single training session, the advice he was giving everyone, was something incredibly important for me.’

On what makes Arteta special…

The way he sees football – his vision, his character, his mentality. He’s a winner and everyone likes to win…as simple as that. I said to my circle: ‘If one day I’m going to leave City and I’m going to stay in the Premier League, it will be only one manager: Mikel Arteta.’ That’s what I said to him when he called me for the first time in that transfer window.
__

Leandro Trossard

Speaking to Reuters about his first months at Emirates Stadium…

I maybe didn’t expect to play that many minutes, but injuries helped me a bit,” Trossard said. I’m however more than convinced of my own capabilities. I arrived in a great group, filled with great players. It was a very busy and weird period for me, but I’m very happy that I have been able to join Arsenal. I think it’s been a great step for me.

On Arsenal’s title chances…

We all know how difficult it is to win the league, looking at Man City and Liverpool in recent years, but I think we have a great squad and that we have proven time and time again that we’re doing well. There are 10 matches left, we’ll see where we end once the season finishes.
__

Matt Turner

Speaking to Goal.com about the danger of the Interlull halting Arsenal’s momentum…

No one’s looking at this international break as an escape or as a little bit of time away. I think the message from our manager and the message amongst the players is very clear: you’re going away to keep fit, to keep playing at the highest level, obviously stay healthy, treat your body right and come back firing on all cylinders because we’re definitely not the only club that’s on pause right now. We need to come back with the right mentality and ready to continue to win games and I think that we have such a good nucleus at the club, that that won’t be an issue.

Arsenal Women manager Jonas Eidevall says that new signing Jodie Taylor will be available for Saturday’s North London derby away at Spurs. 36-year-old Taylor was a free agent after her contract expired at San Diego Wave in December.

Taylor has not played since the end of last year and has been training with a personal coach in the meantime. Arseblog News asked Eidevall a clutch of questions about the former England international, who also played for the Gunners in 2016-17.

“The first question is easy, whether she is available for tomorrow, yes she is.” Arseblog News also asked what her role is likely to be given her lack of playing time in recent months and the fact that she is on a short-term contract until the end of the season.

“Second part is what role- we have to be realistic, she hasn’t played for quite a while,” Eidevall explained. “She has practiced on her own and done a brilliant job there but she hasn’t practiced in a team environment for quite some time.

“We need to give her time, we can see her as a player that impacts our culture and our environment in a positive way, not just in training but in matches.”

Arseblog News asked whether her signing in March was linked to the recent foot injury to Steph Catley and whether the knock-on effect of Katie McCabe potentially being needed at left-back caused him to act and secure another forward. Eidevall had a positive update on the injury to Catley.

“The third part, we were looking at forwards because, from a numbers perspective, we are running low. We are not that many injuries away from not having any squad depth at all in those positions.

“Jodie wasn’t triggered specifically because Steph Catley is unavailable now. We have a quite positive progonosis on Steph, we don’t expect her to be sidelined much more than the games before the international break (in early April).

“That is not something that we think at the moment is going to be season ending or anything like that. It is more tied to the forward situation overall than to Steph Catley.”

Arsenal play away at Spurs on Saturday afternoon at 3pm at Brisbane Road, the game will be broadcast live on Sky Showcase in the UK. You can read a full match preview for that game here.

THE LOWDOWN
Following Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat in Munich, Arsenal dust themselves off for a North London derby in the WSL as they travel to Brisbane Road to play Tottenham. The Gunners have the second leg of that Bayern clash to play at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday but will have to keep their eyes and all their focus on this game.

Last season, they travelled to Spurs following a Champions League away match (albeit with one day fewer in between) and found it difficult to get going, eventually grabbing a 1-1 draw courtesy of a last minute Vivianne Miedema header. A similar result this weekend would almost certainly end Arsenal’s WSL title hopes.

Tomorrow… pic.twitter.com/wSdzPZAKW6

— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) March 24, 2023

With Manchester City and Chelsea playing one another this weekend this is a good opportunity for Arsenal to put themselves in a better position in the table, as four teams scramble for a mixture of the league title and the three UWCL qualifying spots that are up for grabs. Jonas Eidevall’s side will have a new(ish) face in the squad having added striker and free agent Jodie Taylor last week.

Tottenham recently arrested a slide of nine straight league defeats which saw manager Rehanne Skinner lose her job, they will have had 10 days without a game by the time this match comes around on a bog of a pitch at Brisbane Road. They will look to make those small margins work for them and all but guarantee their WSL survival.

TEAM NEWS

Steph Catley (foot) is out of this game and will be out until at least May. Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema are out (both ACL injuries), Gio returns to the squad as she isn’t registered for the UWCL squad and missed the game in Munich, while 36-year-old new signing Jodie Taylor will feature in the squad for the first time.

Available squad
GOALKEEPERS: 1.Zinsberger, 14.D’Angelo, 18.Marckese
DEFENDERS: 2.Rafaelle, 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.Beattie, 6.Williamson, 15.McCabe, 16.Maritz, 26.Wienroither
MIDFIELDERS: 10.Little, 12.Maanum, 13.Wälti, 21.Pelova, 22.Kuhl
FORWARDS:, 17.Hurtig, 19.Foord, 20.Gio, 25.Blackstenius, 27.Taylor, 59.Agyemang

A WORD FROM THE BOSS
“You learn from every game but we see they do some things that they are really good at, like how they stretch opponents organisation with the way that they build up. We need to be really good at controlling those spaces and to be humble in our positioning so we can work forward as much as possible. It is about getting all those details right- there is no shortcut for us in a hectic period for us. We need to do our preparation right on a pitch that will not be perfect and against an opponent that will try to make life as difficult as possible.

“The Leicester game (Tottenham’s most recent game) would have been difficult for Vicky (Jepson) because she would not have had much time to prepare. Now they have 10 days to prepare for this game so if she wanted to try something different, I think this is the game where she will do it. We respect the threat of Beth England but we have been coming up against top class 9s recently, like Bunny Shaw, Sam Kerr and Lea Schuller. We need to treat the whole Tottenham team as a threat.”

LAST TIME OUT
When the teams met in September at Emirates Stadium, Arsenal ran out 4-0 winners thanks to goals from Beth Mead, Rafaelle and a brace from Vivianne Miedema. In the equivalent fixture last season, Miedema rescued a stoppage time point with a header after Rachel Williams gave Spurs a shock lead.

THE OPPOSITION
After a successful 2021-22 which saw Spurs finish in 5th place, their highest ever finish, the house of cards came crashing down for Tottenham and their coach Rehanne Skinner this season. Last season, their success was built on their defence- they only conceded one more goal than Manchester City and Manchester United. However, they scored over 20 fewer goals than both teams.

This season, they lost their defensive solidity (they have already conceded more goals than they did in the whole of the previous campaign) and did not become a greater attacking threat. In January, they bolstered the squad with experienced Chelsea and England striker Beth England, who has four goals in her first five games for the club and took Mana Iwabuchi on loan from Arsenal.

A goal so good it broke the camera!@Bethany_Eng15 #BarclaysWSL @SpursWomen pic.twitter.com/YbysUeyf66

— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) March 15, 2023

Though England boosted the attack, the defence remained leaky and a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool proved to be the final straw for the Spurs board. Assistant manager and former Liverpool boss Vicky Jepson has taken the reins and calmed relegation fears with a 1-0 victory over bottom of the table Leicester City last week courtesy of a Beth England wondergoal.

Tottenham have elected not to have this fixture at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the second consecutive season. There, Arsenal found the games too easy given the size of the pitch. Last season the match was played on a heavy pitch at the Hive and Tottenham were able to eke out a 1-1 draw. They will have a similar aspiration this time on a very uneven surface at Brisbane Road.

PLAYER TO WATCH

Jodie Taylor was a shock Arsenal signing when her signature was announced last Thursday. The 36-year-old has bags of experience at the highest level and has represented the Gunners once before in 2016-17. However, Taylor has been out of contract since December when her contract at San Diego Wave expired.

Jonas Eidevall was pretty adamant in January that he wanted “a prolific striker” to add to the squad but Arsenal were not able to get that deal done. They could sign Taylor as a free agent and took up that option for the final furlong in the WSL. I imagine her arrival is linked to the prognosis for Steph Catley, who Australia boss Tony Gustavsson says will miss the April international break and be out “for several weeks after”. That means Katie McCabe will be needed at left-back more often, hence, Arsenal wanted to add another forward.

I doubt Taylor will start many games at all but will be used as a substitute, either if and when Arsenal are chasing a goal in a game or else to give Stina Blackstenius a rest for the closing stages of games. Having not played for three months, it’s not even certain she will get on the pitch for this match but her addition is certainly an interesting one.

PREDICTED LINE-UP

Subs: 5.Beattie, 12.Maanum, 13.Walti, 14.D’Angelo, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese, 19.Foord, 20.Gio, 27.Taylor

HOW TO CATCH THE GAME
The game kicks off at 3pm on Saturday at Leyton Orient’s Brisbane Road and will be screened live on Sky Showcase in the UK.

COMING UP
We will have match reaction from Jonas Eidevall on the site shortly after the game on Saturday as well as the usual analysis piece. We will also have the build-up and usual MD-1 video ahead of Wednesday night’s UWCL quarter-final second leg against Bayern Munich.

Folarin Balogun has been in Florida this week meeting with representatives from the USA national team.

The 21-year-old striker is giving serious consideration to switching allegiance at national level having played for England since he was 16.

He would qualify for the States having been born in New York and is also eligible to play for Nigeria through his parents.

Speaking yesterday, USA’s interim manager Anthony Hudson revealed: “We’ve had dialogue, we’ve spoken, he’s out here having a bit of a break and some training and we’ve had some discussions. Now it’s about him just enjoying the rest of his trip.”

He added: “I think it’s been good because it’s been an opportunity for us just to share about our program and who we are and what we do.

“I hope we get the chance to speak to him again. So it’s been good, to me, and then I know a few of the guys have spoken to him, as well.”

The scramble to recruit Balogun is a result of the striker’s impressive form for Ligue 1 side Stade de Reims. Since joining on loan from Arsenal in the summer, he’s scored 18 goals in all competitions and is vying for the golden boot with some of the biggest names in world football.

Balogun had been hoping his goals would earn him a call-up from Gareth Southgate for the EURO 2024 qualifiers. When that didn’t come, he released a cryptic message on Instagram – “In life, go where your [sic] appreciated” – before dropping out of the England under-21s and setting off for America.

Were Balogun to confirm a switch to the USMNT it would give him three years to bed in before the World Cup heads to North America in 2026. The prospect of being a poster boy for one of the host countries at FIFA’s showpiece tournament is no doubt attractive.

At the same time, Arsenal keeper Matt Turner, a long-standing member of the USMNT, stressed it won’t all be glitz and glamour.

“The decision has to come from the heart, because it’s not necessarily an easy task always, to come and play in these Concacaf games, and it’s a tough region at times,” he told MLS Soccer.

“So for us, we’d be really grateful to have him, but his heart needs to be in it.”

Balogun will return to Arsenal in the summer ahead of crunch talks with Mikel Arteta about the next step of his career. 

Mikel Arteta has earned a fifth nomination for the manager of the month award after leading Arsenal to another unbeaten run of fixtures.

Victories in March against Everton, Bournemouth, Fulham and Crystal Palace put the Spaniard in pole position to secure the prize for a fourth time this season and a sixth time since he took up life as a head coach.

While Pep Guardiola also has a 100 per cent record this month, his City side has only played twice in the league. Roberto De Zerbi and Unai Emery are the other managers to get the nod.

You can vote for Mikel, here.

Arsenal’s fine form – which included 14 goals in our four fixtures – is further recognised via the nominations of Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard for the player of the month award.

Saka scored three goals and made two assists while Trossard made five assists.

Newcastle’s Alexander Isak, Liverpool’s Mo Salah, Brighton’s Alexis Mac Allister and Villa’s Tyrone Mings are also in the running.

You can vote for Bukayo or Leo, here.

Elsewhere, Bukayo has also won the Football Black List ‘Player – Off the Pitch’ award for his efforts in promoting inclusion outside of football. You can see his acceptance speech below.

#FBL2022 Players – Off The Pitch winner @BukayoSaka87 couldn’t be with us this evening as he is away with @England, but he did send us this message pic.twitter.com/AxAdS5p5fA

— Football Black List (@FootieBlackList) March 22, 2023

There haven’t been quite as many academy players named on the bench for the Arsenal first-team in recent months as there were in the second half of last season, when the squad was very thin.

Reuell Walters, however, has been involved in the senior setup of late having been named on the bench away to Sporting Lisbon and then at home to Crystal Palace.

With Takehiro Tomiyasu ruled out for the rest of the season, it seems likely that Walters, who is currently away with England U19s, will continue to train frequently with the first-team after the international break.

Depending on how many other players are out, it is possible that the 18-year-old could get on the bench again for Mikel Arteta’s team.

It could be an eventful end to the season for Walters as he is also expected to continue playing for the U21s, while he is part of the U18 side that will take on Manchester City in the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup.

Walters is mainly a right-back who relishes pushing forwards, but this season he has also received plenty of experience operating at centre-back and it will be interesting to see which position he ends up playing in the long term.

Looking ahead to next season, it is possible that Walters could continue to be on the periphery of the squad and perhaps feature in the League Cup. However, it may well be more beneficial for him to go on loan and gain experience of senior football.

—

Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird

Folarin Balogun continues to make waves in France, ending a three-game scoring drought to net in consecutive matches for Stade de Reims against Monaco and Marseille.

His tally in Ligue 1 now stands at 17, two behind the division’s top scorers Jonathan David and Kylian Mbappe; an incredible return for a player who originally targeted 10 goals and still has 10 matches left to play.

Watching from afar, manager Mikel Arteta has been impressed, saying last month that the 21-year-old had “something special” and praising his ambition, commitment and bravery.

“It’s really positive that he could say these things,” Balogun told Sky Sports.

“I’m sure, we’ll speak at the end of the season and we’ll have a lot of things to discuss. It’s nice that he’s watching and paying attention to what’s going on.”

Balogun is clearly ambitious and when Gareth Southgate recently announced his squad for upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers, he cryptically posted on Instagram “In life Go where your [sic] appreciated”.

Eligible to play for the USA and Nigeria, it sounded like a shot across the bows of the England manager for overlooking him.

The striker was subsequently selected by the England under-21s but pulled out with an injury. He’s continued to hint that a change of nationality isn’t out of the question.

“My international future is not decided yet in terms of who I play for,” he said.

“Of course, I want to play international football at the highest level, the World Cup, and I want to compete at the highest level and put myself in positions where I’m performing in front of millions of people.”

As for his Arsenal future, that too is up for debate. When he finishes his time in France, he’ll return to a club that has strengthened its attack in his absence through the acquisition of Leandro Trossard. With Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Eddie Nketiah also vying for places up front, there will be stiff competition for regular game time.

Judging by Balogun’s comments above – and the fact he’s happily inviting media interviews – he won’t want to stand still. “There are discussions that need to take place and it’s not a decision that will only be with me,” he said.

“The club will let me know their point of view and I’m sure we’ll come to an agreement.”

Rumours have already circled of a big money move – AC Milan are said to be interested – which may suit all parties if he can’t be suitably integrated at London Colney. He last signed a contract extension in August 2022 and is under contract at Emirates Stadium until 2025.

Arsenal went down 1-0 in Munich in the first leg of their UWCL quarter-final first leg against Bayern Munich, despite creating a host of second half chances. Jonas Eidevall spoke to the press post-match.

On whether Jonas rues the missed chances or takes them as a positive sign ahead of the second leg…
Part of me is proud because it was a really good performance, part of me is disappointed because we need to be more efficient with our chances. Part of me is very angry, I am not sure whether VAR was working tonight otherwise it was someone who was sitting and not looking at the pictures because there were clear and obvious penalty situations, two of them, I think that is unacceptable.

On the thinking behind the first half switch that saw Maritz move to right-back, McCabe to left-back and Pelova to the wing…
There were a few bits we saw there, we could see how much space we had down the sides and it made sense to have players who wanted to play naturally on their sides. I thought that made us control the game in a really, really good way in the second half.

On what is needed to turn the result around in the second leg…
We need to score a goal! At least two. But they are a very, very good counter-attacking team, you saw that tonight. A little bit of you feels danger when you attack because you know they can hit you on the counter. But you need to be brave on the ball, make good decisions and keep them low down the pitch. With our fans at the Emirates, we have a great chance.

On which decisions he was unhappy about…
The pull of the shirt (on Rafaelle) and the handball from their number 4, that was obvious.

On whether the officials explained the decisions…
That’s not how communication with officials works, I wish it worked like that. That is where we have a couple of issues. First of all is that VAR is only introduced in the quarter-finals, I don’t know whether the VAR referee has ever used VAR. Secondly, goal line technology is something you can use at this stage of the competition but it’s not compulsory. Today, it was not in use. Because Bayern Munich choose not to pay for it. Next week at the Emirates Arsenal chooses to pay for it because we think that’s the right thing to do to ensure a fair competition. It is a problem for the competition that not every game has the same level of technology in helping the officials take the right decisions.

On when he found out that Bayern weren’t using GLT…
Yesterday. You have to accept, it is not Bayern’s fault, it is within their right to make the decision. We can all agree that it is very weird that you play in a level of a competition and it comes down to the hosting club if they are going to fund the technology that is being used by both teams.

On whether there is a temptation to not use GLT next week…
It’s not about that, it is not what is important for us, we want to win the right way. Everyone might benefit from goal line technology to know whether the ball is in or not. It is so hard for the referee to see or not. The players deserve to get that level of detail and accuracy.

Oooof, so close! https://t.co/NI0twBK5Gm

— Tim Stillman (@Stillmanator) March 21, 2023

On the 200 travelling Arsenal fans…
They were brilliant, just like the performance from the team, the fans were brilliant. The players were really good, they were really brave on the ball and they displayed Arsenal in a really good way in the second half. We are proud of that, we are very disappointed with the result and we are going to do everything in our power to turn it around next week.

1.Zinsberger; 26.Wienroither (21.Pelova ‘60), 6.Williamson, 2.Rafaelle, 16.Maritz; 13.Walti, 10.Little(c), 12.Maanum; 15.McCabe, 19.Foord; 25.Blackstenius (22.Kuhl ‘81).

Unused subs: 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.Beattie, 14.D’Angelo, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese, 59.Agyemang.

Arsenal have confirmed that Takehiro Tomiyasu underwent surgery on the “significant” knee injury he picked up during last week’s Europa League defeat to Sporting Lisbon and will miss the remainder of the season.

The Japan international slipped on the turf in the early stages, seemed to jar his right knee and had to be substituted after just nine minutes before leaving Emirates Stadium on crutches.

Tomiyasu hasn’t had much luck with injuries since arriving from Bologna in the summer of 2021. After an impressive start to life in London, the full-back was hampered by a calf issue for four months last season and missed much of the tail-end of the season.

In November, he also limped out of the Europa League group stage clash with Zurich with a hamstring problem that hampered his preparations for the World Cup.

While Tomiyasu did feature for his country in Qatar, he played just 76 minutes of the group stages before completing the full 120 minutes of Japan’s penalty shootout defeat to Croatia.

Having loaned Cedric Soares and Ainsley Maitland-Niles to Fulham and Southampton, the Gunners are now relying on Ben White to stay fit for the remaining 10 games of the season. Academy prospect Reuell Walters, who earned his first senior call-up for Sunday’s win over Crystal Palace, is a fallback option.

We wish Tomi all the best with his recovery. It’s hoped he’ll be back in time for pre-season in July.

Noelle Maritz will start at left-back in the Arsenal’s UWCL quarter-final against Bayern Munich tonight in the continued absence of Steph Catley, while Katie McCabe will start on the wing.

Manu Zinsberger starts in goal with Wienroither, Williamson and Rafaelle in defence alongside Maritz. The usual midfield trio of Walti, Little and Maanum continue in midfield. Caitlin Foord and Katie McCabe will play either side of Stina Blackstenius upfront.

The match kicks off at 5.45pm UK and will be streamed live on DAZN’s YouTube channel.

1.Zinsberger; 26.Wienroither, 6.Williamson, 2.Rafaelle, 16.Maritz; 13.Walti, 10.Little(c), 12.Maanum; 19.Foord, 15.McCabe; 25.Blackstenius.

Subs: 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.Beattie, 14.D’Angelo, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese, 21.Pelova, 22.Kuhl, 59.Agyemang.

We’re coming to you direct from London Colney and in Germany ahead of Arsenal’s quarter final Champions League clash with Bayern Munich Frauen taking place at the Allianz Arena.

Our cameras captured the squad going through their paces at the Arsenal training centre, whilst Tim Stillman was in Munich munching on pork knuckles washed down with weißbier.

THE LOWDOWN
Arsenal travel to Munich for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Bayern at the Allianz Arena. Having been knocked out at this stage by German opposition (Wolfsburg) last year, the Gunners will be keen to go one further and qualify for a first Champions League semi-final since 2012.

They will have their work cut out against a Bayern side who have only conceded four goals in the Frauen Bundesliga this season. However, the Gunners seem to have rediscovered some missing chemistry in attack after some rocky weeks in the aftermath of ACL injuries to Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema at the back end of 2022.

Jonas Eidevall selected his squad for the knockout rounds and its Brazilian winger Gio who misses out because each team is only allowed to add three new players to the roster in January and Arsenal signed three players and recalled Gio from loan at Everton. Katherine Kuhl, Victoria Pelova and goalkeeper Sabrina D’Angelo have made the cut.

It seems an odd choice given Arsenal already had three goalkeepers to call on in Manu Zinsberger, Kaylan Marckese and Naomi Williams but have lost Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema since the group stage. Whoever takes to the pitch across these two legs will need to be on their game as Bayern will provide very stern opposition indeed.

TEAM NEWS

Steph Catley (foot) is out of this game, as are Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema (both ACL injuries). Gio and new signing Jodie Taylor are not registered in the Champions League squad and are ineligible.

Available squad
GOALKEEPERS: 1.Zinsberger, 14.D’Angelo, 18.Marckese, 40.Williams
DEFENDERS: 2.Rafaelle, 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.Beattie, 6.Williamson, 15.McCabe, 16.Maritz, 26.Wienroither, 62.Reid
MIDFIELDERS: 10.Little, 12.Maanum, 13.Wälti, 21.Pelova, 22.Kuhl, 61.Earl
FORWARDS:, 17.Hurtig, 19.Foord, 25.Blackstenius, 59.Agyemang

A WORD FROM THE BOSS
“We’ve played teams with great home records in Europe this season in the Champions League, Juventus and Lyon have very strong home records. We drew in Turin and won in Lyon. We have respect for that (Bayern’s home record) but we shouldn’t fear it.

“We tried to use it (having last weekend off) in the best way possible, we had a mixture of some time off but also we used the time efficiently to look at things in our game that we think are going to be important for this game and the games ahead of us.

“We are a team that is in a good place at the moment. Recently, I have had a feeling of sharing less information with the players because I am more sure that we know what to do in certain situations and I hope that is a good sign and not a sign of false security.”

LAST TIME OUT
The teams have never met competitively, they played one another in a pre-season friendly at Emirates Stadium in the summer of 2019. Bayern won 1-0 courtesy of a Melanie Leupolz goal.

THE OPPOSITION
Bayern currently sit two points behind Wolfsburg at the top of the Frauen Bundesliga and play the league leaders in Munich between these two legs. Under new coach Alexander Straus, Bayern have moved to a more possession based style of play and usually adopt a 4231 system similar to the one Arsenal use under Jonas Eidevall.

Bayern boast a host of star names in their squad, with defenders like Carolin Simon and Giulia Gwinn, a midfield three of Sarah Zadrazil, Georgia Stanway and Linda Dallmann and a front line that includes Germany stars Klara Buhl and Lea Schueller, Bayern are a very strong team. Jonas Eidevall was in attendance in Cologne on Saturday as they raced into a 5-0 half-time lead away at Koln.

It is Bayern’s sixth quarter-final appearance in the last seven seasons. For further insight on Bayern, you can listen to our preview podcast here with Munich based journalist Alina Ruprecht.

PLAYER TO WATCH

This very much feels like a tie that will be largely decided in midfield, with Arsenal’s trio of Wälti, Little and Maanum up against the formidable Bayern triumvirate of Zadrazil, Stanway and Dallmann. In the biggest games, Arsenal will always cast a glance at captain Kim Little to lead the team and I am certain she will be the first player that Alexander Straus and his staff identify.

Wolfsburg were able to toss a fire blanket over the Gunners midfield in last season’s quarter-final second leg and strangle them into submission. However, Arsenal were without Lia Wälti on that occasion and the Wälti – Little double pivot will be…errr, pivotal in how Eidevall’s side match up against Bayern.

Georgia Stanway will be familiar with this partnership from her time at City and she will look to disrupt with her typical rumbustious style, while Zadrazil is far more of a deep plying playmaker. Linda Dallmann is the link between the Bayern midfield and attack and Wälti and Little will have to control her and control the ball in Germany.

PREDICTED LINE-UP

Subs: 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.Beattie, 14.D’Angelo, 17.Hurtig, 18.Marckese, 21.Pelova, 22.Kuhl, 59.Agyemang

HOW TO CATCH THE GAME
The match kicks off at 5.45pm on Tuesday evening at the Allianz Arena and will be streamed live on DAZN’s YouTube channel free of charge and un-geoblocked.

COMING UP
We will have match reaction from Jonas Eidevall and a player on the site after the game on Tuesday evening.

Arsenal Women’s Austrian goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger has extended her contract with the club for a further year. Zinsberger’s contract was due to expire in the summer though there was an option for a further year which has been triggered.

There was a feeling that Zinsberger, who joined the club from Bayern Munich in 2019, might leave in the summer with her contract running down and the Gunners signing Canadian ‘keeper Sabrina D’Angelo in January.

However, Zinsberger will stay until at least the summer of 2024. Arseblog News had the chance to speak to Manu in Munich ahead of tomorrow night’s UWCL quarter-final against her former club.

A moment of appreciation for this triple save from Manuela Zinsberger #BarclaysFAWSLpic.twitter.com/O7CfDbXpeD

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) March 28, 2021

“It wasn’t a tough decision at all. I am very proud of what we have achieved here at the club and what I have achieved, on and off the pitch.

“For me, I want to be competitive, not just in the squad but in out little goalkeeper group as well. It wasn’t a tough decision to stay and i cannot wait for the game tomorrow.”

Zinsberger will line up against her former club for the first time on Tuesday evening at the Allianz Arena and the Austrian admits she still has a soft spot for the club.

“I was at the club for five years and they are a big part of how I developed in my career. I love Bayern Munich and I love Munich, the place, it’s close to my family. But tomorrow I am wearing another jersey and I am very happy to be wearing that jersey.”