Head coach looks for correct role for ‘unique’ right-back ‘Sometimes he relies heavily on offensive contributions’ Thomas Tuchel has told Trent Alexander-Arnold he must bring a single-minded focus to the defensive side of his game because one slip at the World Cup next summer could see England pack their suitcases and go home. The head coach said he saw Alexander-Arnold as a right-back, albeit a “unique” one, rather than a midfielder as he named him in a 26-man squad for the qualifier against Andorra in Barcelona on 7 June and the friendly against Senegal in Nottingham three days later. Continue reading...

The Arsenal defender knows she must manage her emotions in the Champions League final – 18 years after she was a mascot for the equivalent fixture There is no bigger test of how Arsenal’s Leah Williamson balances the emotion of the occasion as a fan with her life as a player than a first Champions League final after years of working on her feelings when she is wearing red and white. “Do your job, Leah, and then the fan in you gets to enjoy it afterwards,” her internal monologue will run as she prepares to step on to the pitch when the Gunners take on Barcelona in Lisbon. “It’s funny, Less [Alessia Russo] was asking me about this today,” the 28-year-old says, sitting in the sunshine by the small lake at Arsenal’s London Colney training centre. “Maybe it’s age, maybe it’s having the experience of doing it in other moments. The Euros final was fairly level to this in terms of testing my ability to manage the emotions of the day and occasion. I’m just going to enjoy it. Continue reading...

Alexia : We may have won three Champions Leagues, but you don't start tomorrow 1-0 up.

New chapter in Arsenal’s storied history awaits as they aim to end continental drought in a sold-out Lisbon final After 18 years, Arsenal are back in the biggest game in women’s European football with a dream to end their long wait for continental glory. They face the holders, the favourites and the much-revered Barcelona, who are aiming to win the Champions League for a third consecutive season on a picture-perfect weekend in Lisbon. Strolling along tree-lined paths through the Portuguese capital’s sun-kissed Parque Eduardo VII, as a group of Barcelona fans cross paths with two Arsenal supporters wearing full red-and-white kit and exchange a few friendly quips about Saturday’s final, it is hard not to feel a pang of sympathy for the 3,467 attendees who saw Arsenal lift the Uefa Women’s Cup – as it was known in 2007 – in the somewhat less glamorous surroundings of Boreham Wood FC’s Meadow Park. In those days, the competition concluded with a two-legged home-and-away final. Arsenal followed up their 1-0 away win against the Swedish club Umeå – thanks to an Alex Scott scorcher – with a goalless draw to deliver what remains the greatest moment in the club’s history. Continue reading...

How can Arsenal beat UWCL champions Barcelona? Perhaps they can learn something from their three defeats already this season.

Arsenal’s No 9, who is described as hard-working and humble by her coach, knows she won’t get many chances in the Champions League final on Saturday Arsenal step on to the pitch at the Estádio José Alvalade on Saturday to face the most almighty challenge in their first Champions League final since 2007. Against a Barcelona side who dominate the ball like no other, opportunities will be limited and for a forward, there are few greater tests, as every fleeting chance matters. Alessia Russo, tasked with leading the line in a stacked Arsenal attack, has the opportunity to make a statement as well as earn a place in history. Continue reading...

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Blaugrana face Arsenal after what Caroline Graham Hansen calls an ‘emotional’ campaign under a new manager Normalising the extraordinary. Even in their “worst season”, Barcelona are going for a second quadruple in a row and fourth consecutive Women’s Champions League title. Few may have predicted that late last year, after a defeat at Manchester City prompted a new narrative: this was the season they were finally not going to win anything. In the end, they won the Liga F title but only after losing twice. That may not sound terrible but it is the first time since the 2018-19 season they have been defeated more than once in the league. So a crisis of some sort. The loss at City also prompted some soul-searching for a team in their first season with a new manager, Pere Romeu replacing Jonatan Giráldez last summer. Continue reading...

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