As the headline game in the opening round of the 2021/22 Barclays FA WSL season, Arsenal v Chelsea more than lived up to expectations … on the field. Yet if anything, all this match did is highlight the huge gap between the product on the pitch and the way it is marketed off the pitch.
A crowd of 8,705 for a top-tier women’s game in normal circumstances would be worthy of celebration. However, during 2019/20 when crowds were last allowed into FA WSL games, matches between big clubs at the parent club’s men’s stadiums were attracting crowds in excess of 20,000.
Unfortunately, the organisation and marketing of this match was a disaster from start to finish. Arsenal were in charge of the ticket allocation and did not supply Chelsea with any tickets, despite the Chelsea Women Supporters Club directly approaching Arsenal three times about allocating a specific block to away supporters. This request was denied and in the end Blues supporters who wanted to sit together and create some form of atmosphere in the vast Emirates Stadium had to organise it themselves. Fans had to contact each other, choose one block with lots of available seats and arrange a social media group chat just to sit together.
Coming out of Highbury and Islington station forty-five minutes from kick-off, you would not know that any sporting occasion (men’s or women’s) was taking place. The streets were deserted and half an hour before the game, the outer and inner concourses of the stadium were eerily quiet. It was almost as if this London derby between two of Europe’s top women’s teams was the capital’s best-kept secret.
A major part of English football ritual is buying a match programme and reading it with a pre-match pint, but programmes were seemingly nowhere to be found. Stewards outside the ground were unable to assist and only when fans entered the ground was the mystery revealed – programmes were on sale in the club shop outside the stadium – but once inside the ground you are not allowed back out to buy one.
The phrase “missed opportunity” doesn’t even begin to describe how the promotion and staging of this game was mismanaged, in a 60,000 stadium which was less than a sixth full. Just two days previously Arsenal announced the headline signing of Tobin Heath, but this fact was not represented in the venue. To make matters worse, long-time Arsenal superstar Vivianne Miedema was absent from any images in the stadium.
The match itself just made this lack of promotion even more frustrating as two sides containing some of the world’s best players produced a game worthy of the occasion.
From a Matildas perspective, Caitlin Foord was ruled out with a late niggle. The Arsenal pair of Steph Catley and Lydia Williams were on the bench, as was Sam Kerr for Chelsea.
Pre-game, no one was sure what to expect from a heavily changed Arsenal squad and new head coach Jonas Eidevall was facing the toughest possible debut against the defending Champions. What Arsenal produced was outstanding, albeit aided by some defending from Chelsea which at times could be diplomatically described as “worrying”.
Katie McCabe and Miedema were running the visitors’ backline ragged and Jess Carter looked ill at ease in defence. The Gunners pair, plus new arrival Mana Iwabuchi, showed just how dangerous the North Londoners will be and Ann-Katrin Berger had to be fully alert in dealing with the number of balls coming towards her box.
It was therefore no surprise when the hosts went ahead with 14 minutes on the clock. After McCabe’s brilliant through ball, Miedema turned Carter with ease and hit a low shot past Berger, who may have been disappointed not to get a hand to the ball.
At this stage Arsenal were well on top and should have gone 2-0 up shortly afterwards when Beth Mead found Iwabuchi in a great position, but the Japanese star hit her effort high over the top.
The last ten minutes or so of the first half saw the momentum change slightly as Chelsea pressed. However, with both Kirby and Kerr on the bench, build-up play was more laboured than we are used to seeing from the Blues. Apart from the immense workload of Erin Cuthbert and the promise of Guro Reiten, Ji So-yun was being dealt with comfortably and as the Korean is a major source of creativity for Emma Hayes’ side, this impacted their attacking opportunities.
Cuthbert had been the star of the show for Chelsea in the first half. The Scottish terrier was everywhere, dropping back to snap at the heels of Arsenal’s attackers and chasing seemingly lost causes. Typically then, it was Cuthbert who levelled the scores just before the break as Chelsea recycled the ball from Millie Bright’s corner and the ball was played to the Scot, who fired in the equaliser.
It only took four minutes of the second half for Chelsea’s backline to stutter once more. Miedema found Mead and with the Blues defence backing off, the Lionesses star was able to lash home a shot from out wide to restore Arsenal’s lead.
Emma Hayes introduced both Kerr and Kirby but the pair could do nothing to prevent Arsenal from increasing their lead on the hour mark, with Miedema involved once more. She was able to put Iwabuchi free down the right and the new signing played a delightful curving ball into the box which totally wrong-footed the Chelsea defence. Despite looking to be offside, Mead swept home to make it 3-1.
Chelsea responded with Cuthbert sending in a dangerous ball from the right and Pernille Harder leapt above Lia Wälti to head in. However, try as the Blues might, they could not force the equaliser.
In the past, Chelsea’s lack of defensive strength in depth has not hampered them domestically. On today’s showing, the best of the FA WSL are more than capable of making the Champions’ backline look exceptionally vulnerable this time around.
With the Gunners firing from the off and Manchester City smashing four past a fancied Everton side, Chelsea face some major challenges this season, and the FA WSL could be all the better for it. Now, if someone could manage to promote the games properly and sell tickets in a fan-friendly way, then we really would have the perfect package here in England.
