Arsenal women secured a much-needed win against Brighton to keep their WSL title dreams alive… just about.
Olivia Smith’s deflected shot off Marisa Olislagers was enough to see the three points over the line in front of a nervy 27,000-strong Emirates crowd.
While the gap between the fifth-placed Gunners and league-leaders Chelsea remains at five points, defeat would surely have spelled the end for Renee Slegers’ side even this early in the season, such are the fine margins that typically decide the WSL title race.
Daily Mail Sport’s women’s football reporter Tara Anson-Walsh was at the Emirates to witness all the action…
PANIC STATIONS OVER?
The pressure was mounting on this Arsenal side ahead of kick-off, having failed to win any of their previous three league games – drawing with Manchester United and Aston Villa, and losing to Manchester City. Only once before had they gone four league games without a win, back in 2014 when they failed to pick up three points in their first four matches of the season.
To compound their woes, a midweek defeat at home to Lyon in their opening Champions League group game had shaken confidence further – the European champions humbled on their own turf.
Surely, you don’t win a tournament of that magnitude by fluke. Yet Arsenal’s stuttering start had begun to echo Emma Raducanu’s post-fairytale of New York slump – a spectacular achievement in isolation, now shadowed by inconsistent follow-up performances.
‘The philosophy that brought us the silverware and success last season has not changed overnight,’ insisted Slegers in her programme notes. Still, she’ll know better than most that in this game, proof is always in the pudding.
Arsenal took a step in the right direction here. It was nervy at times, but ultimately the three points is what matters most.
The pressure was mounting on this Arsenal side after they had failed to win any of their previous three league games – drawing with Man United and Aston Villa, and losing to Man City
SMITH WORTH HER WEIGHT IN GOLD
Arriving in north London with a £1million price tag on her shoulders, there was no doubt the pressure was on 21-year-old Olivia Smith to hit the ground running.
Last season at Liverpool, the Canadian notched a modest seven league goals, placing her joint-12th in the Golden Boot race – level with the likes of her now teammates Beth Mead and Frida Maanum.
While those numbers were enough to top Liverpool’s own charts, the world-record fee paid for a young talent like Smith naturally raises expectations.
But she is much more than a finisher. Her pace, close control, and willingness to take on defenders are precisely why Arsenal invested in her – and early signs suggest her ceiling is frighteningly high.
Smith was the most dangerous player on the pitch from the off, clipping the side netting before opening the scoring in the 15th minute. Her shot, aided by a deflection off Brighton’s Marisa Olislagers, trickled past the goalkeeper and into the net – although it harshly went down as an own goal.
For a side that has at times looked hesitant and short of ideas in the final third, Smith offers urgency, unpredictability and fearlessness – everything Arsenal so desperately need at the moment.
Her next stage is consistency after she faded somewhat in the early stages of the second half and was duly replaced by Mead.
Arriving in north London from Liverpool with a £1million price tag on her shoulders, there was no doubt the pressure was on 21-year-old Canadian Olivia Smith to hit the ground running
McCABE MAKES A WELCOME RETURN
Katie McCabe’s return to the starting XI gave Arsenal a much-needed injection of bite and authority down the left. Vocal, aggressive and constantly demanding more from those around her, she brought a level of intensity that had been missing in recent weeks.
She and Caitlin Foord dominated the left channel in the opening stages, stretching Brighton and setting the tone for the Gunners’ early pressure. McCabe had been replaced by Taylor Hinds for the Lyon match, but her selection here said everything about how crucial she remains to Slegers’ side.
While Arsenal have continued to miss the leadership of Leah Williamson, McCabe remains one of those players who they sorely need to rally the troops when the going gets tough.
Katie McCabe’s return to the starting XI gave Arsenal a much-needed injection of authority
DAPHNE TAKES THE PRESSURE OFF
Another day goes by, and Daphne van Domselaar is once again urged to play out from the back – this time against the nervy backdrop of recent performances.
What’s caused the Dutch goalkeeper’s dramatic dip in form after such an impressive season last year remains a mystery – but the same could be said of the team as a whole.
As one of the most high-profile positions on the pitch, it’s inevitable that the goalkeeper shoulders much of the blame when things go wrong and Van Domselaar hasn’t escaped criticism for her costly errors this term.
But against Brighton, she held her nerve. Largely untested, yes – but she stayed calm in the sort of moments that have previously unravelled her. A first clean sheet in four games will do her the world of good.
