The Women’s Super League’s December goal-of-the-month compilation will probably include three contributions from this match. Arsenal scored two of them and climbed to second in the table as half-volleys from Katie McCabe and Olivia Smith helped them on their way to a valuable victory.
It will have felt all the more satisfying for Arsenal after Chelsea dropped points against Everton last Sunday. They were momentarily given a scare when Honoka Hayashi levelled the scores in a frenetic first-half spell, but that proved to be a rare Everton attack in a contest that was otherwise managed well by Arsenal’s midfield.
After McCabe’s opener and Hayashi’s equaliser, Alessia Russo quickly restored Arsenal’s lead with a scrappy effort and Everton were fortunate not to be further behind. Arsenal’s display of inventive movement led to some relentless first-half pressure. Although Everton stemmed the tide a little in the second half, a shock result rarely looked on the cards and Smith’s instinctive strike into the far corner made it 3-1 to secure the win.
Brian Sørensen, Everton’s manager, accepted the visitors were too strong. “In that first 20 minutes, they were really suffocating us,” he said. “When I see Arsenal at their best, it’s the best team in the league by a mile, in the way that they move together defensively and the way they move the ball.”
Further cause for the visitors’ joy came with a late substitute appearance for Leah Williamson. It was the England captain’s first appearance since July’s European Championship final in Basel, after a knee injury.
“I thought she was ready for more game states because of how good she has looked in training,” said Renée Slegers, the Arsenal head coach. “We were comfortable bringing her on. It is still about finding the right moments, because even though she is a very experienced player she’s been away for four months so you want that comeback to be good. But it worked really well.”
In Williamson’s absence, Arsenal’s mid-November had a loss at Bayern Munich sandwiched between draws with Chelsea and Tottenham, which had added some pressure after October’s losses to Manchester City and OL Lyonnes, but that blip now appears to be behind them.
This was their fourth victory in a row in all competitions and they will be confident of extending that run to six before Christmas, with trips to Leuven and the WSL2 club Crystal Palace, in the League Cup quarter-finals, next week.
“There have been wins with one-goal difference so we have been working hard for the wins, even though we have been dominating a lot,” said Slegers. “Especially [in the] first half, we played really good football. We’re on a good run, in a good place. The last block [of matches] was challenging with really top opposition. But we are right on track with what we want to do.”
This win will be remembered for two spectacular Arsenal goals. McCabe’s delightful strike in the 11th minute came as a half-cleared ball reached her outside the Everton area. She lined up a dipping half-volley that flew diagonally into the corner. Smith’s effort, three minutes from time, was equally impressive, struck with a lethal bounce and beating Courtney Brosnan at a similar angle.
Earlier, Beth Mead had a far-post header saved, Mariona Caldentey’s low shot was blocked, a Kyra Cooney-Cross strike was deflected inches wide of the post by Hikaru Kitagawa and Russo’s header hit the side-netting, as Everton had to hold on. They stay ninth.
