Arsenal Women’s start raises early title concerns

Arsenal Women’s start raises early title concerns Another slow start threatens to derail Arsenal’s title challenge before it really gets going. Photo by Sarah Ray-Gain/Getty Images Before this season, the manager and players knew what had happened in each of the past two seasons. An early stutter cost the team the title. Unfortunately, they have done it again. Five points from three matches means Arsenal are already four points behind Manchester City . Next come Chelsea and City away in the league. We are now talking about Arsenal having to protect their title challenge by winning both games. Defeat would mean dropping three points to a direct rival, while a draw would mean losing two more. Arsenal already know what repeated draws can do to a title bid after last season. In a curious way, playing bigger teams who want to control the game may suit Renée Slegers ’ side better than facing opponents who sit in a low block. Chelsea and Manchester City are attacking teams who want the ball and will leave space behind their defence, where Stina Blackstenius or Selina Cerci can run. The same applies to Lisa Baum and Olivia Smith on the wings. If we think back to what happened under Jonas Eidevall , Arsenal often struggled to break down low blocks because of a rigid attacking structure. I do not think they are completely free of that problem now in certain areas of the pitch. It is interesting because Chelsea use a similar attacking shape against a low block. One team works in a 3-2-5, while the other uses a 2-3-5. Both are looking to overload the opposition defence, with the added challenge of controlling the counter-attack if possession is lost. Photo by Sarah Ray-Gain/Getty Images You can often predict where the Arsenal players will be and which zones they will occupy. That can make them too predictable, especially once they are set in their attacking shape. Supporters who watch the team regularly know the patterns of play. So do opposition analysts. Once Arsenal settle into their structure against a low block, the sharp, quick and precise short passing required in tight central areas does not happen often enough. The use of the wings is well established, but the final ball is too often lacking. The margins are small. Arsenal have scored only two goals in three games, but with a little more fortune that figure could have been much closer to ten. The bigger question is what the players and coaches are doing in training to solve these problems. What exercises are they using to prepare for these situations? At times, it can look as though the players are short of ideas. There is also the question of whether the 4-3-3 or 4-4-2 structure, with inverted full-backs and/or wingers, needs to change. I do not think it does. I have seen suggestions that Arsenal should play more directly at times, and perhaps there is a place for that in certain situations. But how often do those opportunities really appear against a low block? It reminds me of basketball, where my coaches used to say that the best way to beat a zonal defence was to run and create as many transitions as possible. The other option is to use different personnel. Once everyone is fit, Arsenal will have 27 players to choose from and a huge number of possible combinations. It then becomes a question of changing the hierarchy, rotating players to suit the gameplan and making sure those in form are on the pitch while those who are not performing are left on the bench or in the stands. There is one final issue, leadership on the pitch. Arsenal have plenty of technical leaders, players who can carry the team with the quality of their football. But who are the leaders capable of changing the direction of a game when it starts to go wrong? That is an important question, and one Arsenal need to answer quickly. Photo by Sarah Ray-Gain/Getty Images