Arsenal qualify for Champions League’s group stage with narrow victory over Ajax | OneFootball

Arsenal are into the group stage of this season’s UEFA Women’s Champions League after they defeated Dutch club Ajax 1-0 in the second leg of their Round 2 tie this evening.

Vivianne Miedema made all the difference back home in her native Netherlands as her well-worked goal was the only thing that separated the two red and white sides under the stormy skies of Amsterdam. Despite fighting until the final whistle to get a result on home soil, Ajax fell to a 3-2 defeat on aggregate with Miedema’s early second half goal being enough to see visitors Arsenal progress through to the group stage.

After what most would say was a disappointing night at the LV Bet Stadium in Boreham Wood last week, Arsenal hoped that their North London Derby triumph over Tottenham Hotspur would give them the cutting edge in what was a crucial game so early on in the 2022/2023 season for Jonas Eidevall’s side. The game’s opening minutes saw both teams attempt to force their way into the final third and test the opposing defence. Ajax started to pile on some early pressure and with Ashleigh Weerden charging down the left-hand side, it seemed likely that she was going to have a shot on goal, however, she instead put in a cross that was not met by a fellow Ajax teammate.

The Dutch side weren’t making it easy for Arsenal to play fluid football but a progressive pattern of passing into the final third saw Laura Wienroither have a shot from a tight angle, her effort hitting the side-netting. The Gunners then edged closer to opening the scoring when a delivery from Caitlin Foord met Stina Blackstenius in the box but her shot was saved by Ajax’s Lize Kop.

Midway through the first half, a ball whipped in by Katie McCabe almost met the boot of Blackstenius in the six-yard box but the right connection couldn’t be made. Arsenal were quickly realising that the Swedish forward was able to get into strong positions high up the pitch to create dangerous chances.

Despite Arsenal having got themselves into a couple of promising positions, it was Ajax who were then almost handed an opportunity. A careless back-pass from Steph Catley to Manuela Zinsberger was sure to heighten the nerves of Arsenal fans but with no Ajax players lurking in the area, a corner was the consequence and what could’ve turned out to be a disaster for The Gunners ended in a huge sigh of relief.

Eidevall was forced to make an early substitution before the break with Rafaelle Souza unable to continue due to an ankle problem. The Brazilian international captain was replaced by young centre-back Lotte Wubben-Moy. Arsenal did not let that setback dampen their spirits and some excellent pressure from captain Kim Little forced Ajax into a defensive error which allowed Miedema to take a shot. Unfortunately, she was unable to hit the target.

Arsenal broke the deadlock early in the second half when Miedema found herself with plenty of space to work the ball to the edge of the box and she slid her resulting effort into the back of the net in real style.

The Gunners looked to double their lead as substitute Beth Mead almost created an opportunity for Wienroither while Caitlin Foord also struck the ball towards goal.

Some great build-up play from the home side then saw Nadine Noordam create a great platform for Tiny Hoekstra. She had the ball on a plate to put into the back of the net but the tenacity of Wubben-Moy meant that the Ajax forward was unable to get her shot away. Soon after, Little was able to make a vital clearance to deny another Ajax opportunity, her performance being one of the standouts of the night.

Foord then looked like she was about to put the game to bed for Arsenal as she danced her way into the six-yard box but her effort couldn’t find the back of the net.

Arsenal ended the tie 1-0 victors on the night and 3-2 winners on aggregate and they can now look ahead to next week’s group stage draw.