Could squad depth hold Arsenal Women back in their quest for European glory?

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·29 December 2024

Could squad depth hold Arsenal Women back in their quest for European glory?

The last time Arsenal Women competed in the UEFA Women’s Champions League knockout rounds, during the 2022-23 season, they reached the semi-finals.

After knocking out Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals, Arsenal faced Wolfsburg in the semi-finals and had a chance to qualify for the finals. Following a 2-2 draw in the away leg, the home leg also ended in a 2-2 draw – the game went to extra-time. Everyone, including our Gunner women, thought the game would go down to penalties, but a 119th-minute a goal by Pauline Bremer saw our Gunners eliminated.

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Wolfsburg went on to lose to Barcelona Femeni in the final. Unfortunately, our Gunners didn’t make the UWCL last season, but this season, they’re back in it.

Our Gunner women returned to the UWCL this season, determined to show that they belong there. They led their Group C ahead of Bayern Munich, Juventus, and Vålerenga, and what was amazing is that they qualified for the quarter-finals with two games to spare.

With two games in the quarter-finals (with the draw set for February) and two games in the semi-finals, Arsenal could be just four games away from playing in the UWCL final set for the Estadio Jose Alvalade in Lisbon in May 2025.

I’m confident if our Gunners can make it to the final, they’ll have a good chance of winning it.

So realistically, can we get to the final? 90MIN’s Arsenal Women correspondent, Jamie Spangher, doesn’t think Arsenal will have a successful run in the UWCL knockouts. He feels that while Arsenal have shown they can cause trouble on the European stage, their squad depth could hold them back.

Spangher said, “Arsenal have been in firing form since Renee Slegers took hold of the mantle, playing with a fight that fans have been longing for. The Gunners took it to Bayern Munich on matchday six, and are looking like they may cause some real issues on the European stage.

Referring to both Arsenal and Manchester City, suggests that neither team has the ability to go all the way, saying:

“Both of these English sides can elicit glimpses that prove they are able to beat any side on the globe, but their questionable depth may stop them from going all the way.”

I’m not sure Arsenal’s squad is as thin as Spangher suggests. With everyone fit, we have a pretty big squad with at least two players per position. Call me an optimist, but I think we have the quality to compete for European glory. With league glory this season uncertain, given Chelsea’s seven-point lead on our girls, they can still make it their mission to win the UWCL and go after the FA Cup & League Cup too.

Incidentally, Spangher predicts that Chelsea will win the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time ever, under serial UWCL winner Sonia Bompastor.

What do you think Gooners?

Seasons Greetings to all of our readers from the JustArsenal team!

Michelle M

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