Suzanne Wrack’s report is in so I’ll leave you with that. Bye!
Sonia Bompastor's reaction
A bit frustrated about the goal we conceded. To be fair, in the second half we didn’t control the game the way we wanted to do. We could have killed the game in the first half. Really proud of the team performance; the players showed a lot of resilience.
[On the disallowed goals] It’s difficult for me to say – I was too far away and focussing on other parts of the game. I need to watch the game before I make any comments.
Renee Slegers' reaction
[On Stina Blackstenius’s disallowed goal] We were very surprised. I don’t see any players calling for it, and you watch it back - I’ve only seen it from one angle, and it doesn’t look like a handball. That’s frustrating, of course.
[On Frida Maanum’s disallowed goal] "The angle is really hard to see. For me, in retrospect watching it on video, it’s hard for me to see so it’s really hard for the referee on the pitch.
It’s a game where you see momentum shift, Chelsea were on top of us at the start of the game but we came back and showed such a good mentality, so much quality. It’s fine margins, so certain decisions become really big decisions - that’s out of our hands. But if you were to ask me now if I was in favour of VAR, I would say yes.”
“Moral victories have their own sweet tang, of course,” writes Charles Antaki. “But like most sweet things they end up being transient and unsatisfactory. Arsenal need a run of good square meals to get back to healthy ways.”
A controversy in three parts
“Arsenal have been robbed,” says the Sky Sports pundit Izzy Christiansen. This is a summary of the three second-half incidents.
54 min Stina Blackstenius has a goal wrongly disallowed for handball – but the corner that led to the goal should have been a goalkick.
87 min Alessia Russo looks fractionally offside before equalising for Arsenal.
90 min Frida Maanum has a potential winner disallowed for offside, an extremely tight decision that looks wrong to the naked eye.
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“Two things can be true,” says Zach Neeley. “VAR isn’t worth it overall and bad decisions just took one of the main contenders out of the title race.”
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Full time: Man Utd 0-1 Aston Villa
A surprise result at Leigh Sports Village, where Manchester United’s unbeaten run has gone up in flames.
Alessia Russo's reaction
Really disappointed not to take three points. I think we deserved to win and some of the goals we scored were wrongly disallowed. I know the referees have a tough job but it’s a high level we’re at now. I’m frustrated.
A point is still massive – and more importantly it was a really good performance that we’ll take into the rest of the season.
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Chelsea are the happier team even though they conceded a late equaliser. They have equalled a WSL record of 33 games unbeaten – but only because of a dodgy offside decision that ruled out Frida Maanum’s injury-time goal. It was a strange second half: Arsenal scored three times yet the only goal that was given was the one that should have been disallowed.
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Full time: Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea
A chorus of a boos at the final whistle.
90+3 min Imagine if Chelsea score a winner now; the Emirates would explode.
90+2 min I don’t say this very often, but today has been a good day for lovers of VAR.
90+1 min At first glance Maanum looks onside as she ran onto Alessia Russo’s through pass. Renee Slegers is shaking her head in disgust on the touchline.
90 min: Maanum has a goal disallowed!
It was a beautiful finish, clipped nonchalantly over Hampton, but the flag went up for offside. I’d like to see that again…
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89 min Renee Slegers has been booked for something or other. Sonia Bompastor was unhappy with a challenge by Hinds on Cuthbert; I’m not sure what Slegers did.
88 min “Arsenal! Arsenal!” rings round the Emirates Stadium. This game is anyone’s now.
After an extended spell of Arsenal pressure, Maanum lifted a clever angled pass into the Chelsea area. Russo – who looked fractionally offside – pulled away from Bjorn and sidefooted a crisp volley towards goal from 10 yards. Hampton did very well to reach it, diving low to her right, but could only help it into the net.
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GOAL! Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea (Russo 87)
Arsenal were having a moment; now they’re celebrating an equaliser!
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86 min: Chelsea substitutions Sandy Baltimore and Oriane Jean-Francois replace Alyssa Thompson, whose fabulous goal may have won this game, and Wieke Kaptein.
85 min The resulting corner is headed down and behind by Russo. A 0.0001 chance on the old xG.
84 min Arsenal are having a moment. Smith plays a return pass to Maanum, whose cross-shot bounces across goal and behind for a… corner. In fact it was shanked behind by Bjorn, who with a firmer connection may well have scored an own-goal.
84 min Kelly works Hampton with a bouncing shot form 25 yards. Good effort but a comfortable save.
83 min Caldentey gets to the byline and lifts a cross that is headed away to the edge of the area. Smith (I think) has a snapshot that is blocked.
81 min Fox plays an inviting pass down the right for Smith, who clips a first-time cross on the run. It’s missed by everyone in the middle and reaches Kelly beyond the far post; she slashes a difficult half-volley well off target.
80 min Chelsea win a corner – and take their time over it, a right they have earned by taking the lead in this game. Eventually Cuthbert sprays it straight out of play for a goalkick. Oh well.
78 min: Arsenal substitution Chloe Kelly comes on to huge cheers; Caitlin Foord goes off.
77 min A blistering run down the right from Carpenter ends with a low cross to Kerr on the six-yard line. She can’t find an angle for a shot so tries a backheel to Kaptein instead; Kaptein is superbly tracked by an Arsenal midfieldedr and the danger passes.
76 min Arsenal have finished strongly in several games this year so this certainly isn’t done. Chelsea are defending superbly, though, and are starting to look more dangerous in transition.
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74 min Kerr sparks a Chelsea break with a dynamic run down the right – but then she leaves Kaptein’s return pass for an imaginary teammate and the move peters out.
72 min: Chelsea substitutions Comedy boos at the Emirates as Sam Kerr replaces Catarina Macario.
72 min: Arsenal substitutions Frida Maanum and Kyra Cooney-Cross replace Stina Blackstenius and Victoria Pelova.
71 min Arsenal are pushing for an equaliser, dominating possession for the most part. But there’s an element of desperation to their attacking play. The pitch also looks weirdly slow, which isn’t helping them.
70 min: Man Utd 0-1 Aston Villa Aston Villa still lead at Leigh Sports Village, so this could be a really good day for Chelsea. (And Aston Villa.)
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68 min A reminder that, if it stays like this, Arsenal will be eight points behind Chelsea and probably out of the title race. Should that eventuate, we’ll hear plenty about Stina Blackstenius’s disallowed goal.
66 min Smith beats Chalres with ease, moves into the area and cuts the ball back to Blackstenius. She sweeps a first-time shot that takes a slight deflection and is pushed away by Hampton. Good save.
Arsenal will be really encouraged by the ease with which Smith dribbled past Charles.
65 min Pelova is booked for a nasty, studs-up follow through into Walsh’s leg. Walsh is limping around in obvious pain.
64 min Thompson, such a livewire in Chelsea’s attack, charges across Fox and comes this close to meeting Rytting Kaneryd’s cross. Fox sees her at the last second and makes a crucial block tackle.
62 min: Arsenal substitutions Taylor Hinds and Olivia Smith replace Katie McCabe and Beth Mead.
61 min: Chelsea substitution Ellie Carpenter replaces Lucy Bronze at right-back.
60 min A pithy email from Arsenal fan Charles Antaki: “Unlucky.”
58 min VAR in the WSL: discuss.
57 min The replays confirm Blackstenius controlled the ball with her thigh, not her arm. That, sorry to say, is a bad mistake from the referee Melissa Burgin.
Chelsea can argue that the corner was wrongly awarded in the first place. Let’s all play Whataboutery, the fun game that’s gripping the entire bloody planet.
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56 min I have no idea what happened there. One moment the TV coverage was showing replays of Blackstenius’s finish; the next Hannah Hampton was taking a free-kick for Chelsea.
You’re welcome.
55 min McCabe is booked for a really poor tackle on Bronze (I think).
DISALLOWED GOAL! Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea
Mead’s corner evaded Bright, hit the head of the unsighted Charles and ricocheted towards Blackstenius. She controlled the ball and smashed it into the roof of the net – but the control was with her hand and the goal has been ruled out.
At least I assume that’s why it was disallowed because there were no other Arsenal players involved. It’s hard to be sure and the Arsenal coach Renee Slegers is on one.
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GOAL! Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea (Blackstenius 54)
Arsenal are level!
52 min The referee Melissa Burgin has an extended word with Katie McCabe. We can probably join the dots.
51 min: Vital save by DvD! Rytting Kaneryd evades a woolly challenge from Pelova in the area and has a couple of close-range shots crucially blocked by Wubben-Moy. After a bit of pinball, Charles’ low shot is kicked away by the stretching Van Domselaar. That’s a good save – and brilliant defending from Wubben-Moy.
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48 min Thompson breaks dangerously down the left but then slides an errant cross too far in front of Macario. That was actually a good chance because I think Macario had the run on her marker Catley.
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46 min Peep peep! Arsenal get the second half under way. No hay banda substitutions.
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Half time: Man Utd 0-1 Aston Villa
I promised you goalflashes from Old Trafford and, erm, I forgot. So sue me!
I can belatedly inform you that Villa are ahead at half-time thanks to a 35th-minute goal from Miriael Taylor.
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Half-time reading
Half time: Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea
A half of two halves at the Emirates. Chelsea started the match sensationally, hitting the woodwork either side of Alyssa Thompson’s brilliant goal. But Arsenal eventually found their groove and were much the better side as half-time approached. While they didn’t create any clear chances, the Chelsea defence had to work extremely hard to keep Hannah Hampton’s workload down.
45+2 min Arsenal take a short corner on the left, eventually leading a blocked shot from Pelova on the edge of the area.
45 min Four minutes of added time. Only one team wants to hear the whistle – Arsenal’s pressure has been relentless in the last 10 or 15 minutes.
44 min Chelsea have forgotten how to kepe the ball. It’s all a bit strange because they were imperious for the first 20 minutes.
42 min “Any news of Leah Williamson, whose presence Arsenal are clearly missing?” asks Jeremy Boyce.
She’s back in training but nowhere near a return – I think Arsenal are hoping she’ll be available before the winter break.
41 min Hampton is okay to continue.
40 min Hampton needs treatment after diving bravely at the feet of Blackstenius. The camera cuts to Emma Hayes and Vic Akers, two giants of the women’s game, in the crowd.
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37 min Blackstenius tries to place one from 15 yards. Comfortable save for Hampton as she falls to her right.
Bright loses the ball high up the field to Russo, who squares it to Caldentey on the edge of the area. Her shot is tame and Hampton makes another comfortable save. But things are happening for Arsenal. Things.
36 min Bright and Hampton leave the ball for each other on the edge of the Chelsea area. Blackstenius is on the scene quicksmart and Bright has to make a desperate lunging tackle.
34 min Out of nothing, Chelsea almost make it 2-0. Bronze chests down a throw-in on the edge of the area, realises nobody is coming to challenge and floats a shot towards the far post with her left foot. It beats Van Domselaar and whistles just wide.
31 min Foord’s cross is booted away by Bjorn, but right now the ball keeps coming back at Chelsea. Moments later Bjorn makes a vital tackle in the area after being twisted inside-out by Blackstenius. Fine defending.
27 min Hampton looks witheringly at Charles (I think) after slicing an awkward backpass straight out of play. Arsenal are definitely growing into the game.
25 min It’s a more even game now, with Arsenal starting to find some passing rhythm.
22 min Better from Arsenal. Foord wriggles away from Bronze in the area before playing a square pass to the onrushing Caldentey. She tries to take the ball in her stride but is superbly tracked by Cuthbert, who slides it behind for a corner.
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21 min A slightly calmer period for the Arsenal defence. And for all Chelsea’s brilliance, it’s still only 1-0.
18 min I can’t remember Mariona Caldentey touching the ball, which tells you all you need to know about the balance of play.
16 min Van Domselaar should have done better with Macario’s original shot but recovered admirably to save Kaptein’s follow-up.
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15 min: Macario hits the bar!
How the flip did that stay out? Macario totally ignored a physical challenge from Wubben-Moy and blasted a shot from the edge of the area. Van Domselaar pushed it up in the air and onto the top of the crossbar, after which the ball dropped invitingly front of goal. Kaptein’s flying header was pawed away by Van Domselaar and somehow Arsenal got the ball away. Wow.
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13 min Mead’s corner is shanked towards her own goal by Cuthbert and pushed away by Hampton, a good instinctive save. The ball rebounds to Russo, whose fierce snapshot is crucially blocked.
13 min Blackstenius surges down the left to win Arsenal’s first corner - a much needed shift in momentum, however small.
12 min That was such a good finish from Thompson. She had stopped running, which meant she had no momentum to put into a drive (the return pass was very slow). Instead she composed herself in a split-second and floated the most delicate first-time shot over Van Domselaar.
11 min Arsenal may have to change something, even at this early stage, because they’re being swamped in midfield.
It’s Thompson’s first goal in the WSL. She received the ball just short of the halfway line, gobbled up 50 yards with a driving run and lent the ball to Rytting Kaneryd on the right side of the area. She pushed it back to Thompson, who curled a majestic chip from the edge of the area that sailed slowly over Van Domselaar and into the far corner.
The Arsenal players got straight into a huddle after the goal – not to discuss the goal itself so much as why they are being completely overrun.
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GOAL! Arsenal 0-1 Chelsea (Thompson 9)
A brilliant goal from Alyssa Thompson gives Chelsea a deserved lead!
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9 min Arsenal need to get a foothold in the game; Chelsea are strutting around the Emirates like they own the place.
7 min Cuthbert, 20 yards form goal, hooks a bouncing ball over the bar. Decent effort but Van Domselaar’s heart rate was unaffected.
6 min “This is indeed a biggie, as you say Rob; it’s hard to see Arsenal getting much out of the league unless they step up a couple of notches and beat Chelsea,” writes Charles Antaki. “Obviously being at home helps (though it hasn’t in the past), but the continued absence of Leah Williamson is, everybody concedes, a serious handicap. But if they pull it off, then extra plaudits and huzzahs.”
5 min Rytting Kaneryd has a shot blocked after a good left-to-right move from Chelsea. They’ve started with authority.
4 min Chelsea have an injury concern over Nathalie Bjorn. She’s had treatment and is going to carry on for now.
2 min: Rytting Kaneryd hits the post!
Chelsea almost make the perfect start. Bronze feeds a pass into Macario, who turns it cleverly round the corner towards Rytting Kaneryd. She pokes the ball past the outrushing Van Domselaar and it hits the face of the near post. The rebound could have gone anywhere but Arsenal were able to get it away.
1 min Peep peep! Chelsea kick off from right to left as we watch.
Ahead of Remembrance Day, wreaths have been laid in the centre circle at the Emirates and The Last Post is being performed.
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And of Sonia Bompastor
It’s a huge occasion, one of the best games in women’s football in the world. We can’t wait to be on the pitch with a great atmosphere. This is one of the best weeks we’ve had since I became manager of Chelsea. If we can do on the pitch what we did in training this week, it’ll be a good thing.
The pre-match thoughts of Renee Slegers
Every game has its story, every game demands a certain preparation. We try to keep as many things the same as possible. The players have been working really hard – I’m happy it’s matchday now.
The WSL table at the start of play
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea Women | 7 | 11 | 19 |
| 2 | Man City Women | 7 | 10 | 18 |
| 3 | Man Utd Women | 7 | 14 | 17 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur Women | 7 | 1 | 15 |
| 5 | Arsenal Women | 7 | 10 | 14 |
| 6 | London City Lionesses | 7 | -9 | 9 |
| 7 | Brighton & Hove Albion Women | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| 8 | Aston Villa Women | 6 | 0 | 7 |
| 9 | Everton Women | 7 | -4 | 5 |
| 10 | Leicester Women | 7 | -8 | 5 |
| 11 | Liverpool FC Women | 6 | -9 | 0 |
| 12 | West Ham Women | 7 | -16 | 0 |
Arsenal’s Taylor Hinds chats to Suzanne Wrack
This is the type of team that I want to be in. I have the utmost respect for Liverpool for everything they’ve done for me over the five years. There’s a little part of me that’s always going to love Liverpool. So many of my friends are still up there, scousers are just one of a kind too, and I definitely miss that side of it, the people, but I’m also loving it here and I’m really thriving and happy.
The difference is just the standard, the intensity and the quality. Everything’s so fast-paced and training every day is like playing in a game every day. That’s what you want: you want to train how you play and here I get to do that with world-class players and learn from them.
Team news
Plenty of changes for both teams from last week’s victories over Leicester and London City Lionesses respectively. Arsenal bring in Emily Fox, Lotte Wubben-Moy and Victoria Pelova for Taylor Hinds, Laia Codina and the injured Kim Little.
Chelsea bring in Niamn Charles, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Wieke Kaptein, Catarina Macario and Alyssa Thompson. Out go Ellie Carpenter, Sjoeke Nusken, Sandy Baltimore, Aggie Beever-Jones and Guro Reiten.
Arsenal (4-4-2) Van Domselaar; Fox, Wubben-Moy, Catley, McCabe; Mead, Caldentey, Pelova, Foord; Russo, Blackstenius.
Substitutes: Borbe, Codina, Maanum, Smith, Kelly, Nighswonger, Hinds, Cooney-Cross, Harwood.
Chelsea (possible 4-2-3-1) Hampton; Bronze, Bright, Bjorn, Charles; Walsh, Cuthbert; Rytting Kaneryd, Kaptein, Thompson; Macario.
Substitutes: Peng, Carpenter, Buurman, Nusken, Girma, Baltimore, Kerr, Hamano, Jean-Francois
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Manchester United v Aston Villa also kicks off at midday. We’ll have goalflashes from that game; just don’t expect chapter on verse on whether United are playing 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3.
Preamble
Hello, hello and welcome to live coverage of one of the games of any WSL season. Arsenal v Chelsea is a biggie at the best of times, never mind when it’s the champions of Europe vs the champions of England – and both teams unashamedly cover their neighbour’s titles.
It’s a bigger game for Arsenal, whose hopes of winning the WSL title will be imperilled should they lose today. They’re already five points behind Chelsea after seven games; and while that is largely down to a tough run of fixtures, they can’t afford the gap to widen to eight points.
Chelsea, chasing a seventh league title in a row, keep rolling on; their only dropped points so far came at Manchester United. But they know the threat that Arsenal pose – two seasons ago Chelsea were stuffed 4-1 at the Emirates. And, as they know too well, Arsenal are the current European champions.
Kick-off 12pm GMT.
