Alyssa Thompson settles it as Arsenal Women fail to score again


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Chelsea 1-0 Arsenal at Stamford Bridge, and Alyssa Thompson's first-half goal was the whole game. Thirty-ninth minute. Arsenal had run the opening half hour and came away with nothing for it.

Renée Slegers made six changes. Anneke Borbe came in for her first start, Mariona Caldentey went out to the wing, Kyra Cooney-Cross into midfield behind a back four of Emily Fox, Leah Williamson, Steph Catley and Laia Batlle. On the first thirty minutes you'd say the shape worked fine.

The problem is the bit at the end of it. Arsenal have two goals in four WSL games and sit seventh. A tight one away at Chelsea is a defeat you can live with in isolation, but the draws with Crystal Palace and Manchester United at home are what make this look like a pattern rather than a bad afternoon.

Arseblog News calls it a lack of clarity in the attack, and having watched Alessia Russo get starved of anything resembling a clean service for four games, that reading is hard to argue with. Nobody seems to know who the creator is. Mariona out wide is either the fix or an admission there isn't one.

Paris FC away on Wednesday, then Manchester City away on 4 October. Not the week you'd choose to find your finishing.

Carlos Cuesta has left Parma by mutual decision, with the club having lost three of their opening five in Serie A. He was on Arteta's staff here, and a first head-coach job in Italy at his age was always going to be a hard sell. I'd expect him back in a big club's building before long.

Jessie Gale made her debut on loan at Newcastle and Sophie Harwood won at Sheffield United. Both are there until June.

And it's thirty years since David Dein appointed Arsène Wenger, which remains the single best decision anyone at this club has ever made.



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