Arsenal Women Must Bide Their Time with Managerial Appointment  

Jonas Eidevall resigned as Arsenal Women’s manager two weeks ago following a damaging 2-1 defeat to Chelsea that further compounded their miserable start to the season.

They must be shrewd with their next managerial appointment to ensure their talented squad fulfils its potential. Read on as we look at the latest state of play.

A New Era for Arsenal

New York City FC head coach Nick Cushing has emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Eidevall, but appointing him will not be easy.

Cushing previously won several trophies with Manchester City, before heading to the United States to join New York as their assistant manager in 2020.

He has since been promoted into the top job and has guided New York to the National Women's Soccer League play-offs this season. The club will be reluctant to let him go at this stage.

Interim coach Renee Slegers has led Arsenal to two wins from two and she will likely continue in the role until the club appoints a permanent successor to Eidevall.

Cushing appears to be the number one candidate, but Slegers can also make a case for herself to get the job if the team keeps winning over the next few weeks.

Champions League Aspirations

Arsenal face a couple of crucial Champions League fixtures against Juventus in November and they can ill-afford any slip-ups.

The first leg is scheduled for November 12 in Italy before Juventus visit London nine days later. Both games will test their mettle and provide a good measure of how far Arsenal will go this term.

Arsenal desperately need their top stars to perform in Europe. Australian winger Caitlin Foord has sparkled in the first couple of games and is key to their hopes.

The Gunners are the bookmakers’ favourites to finish second in their group behind Bayern Munich, but they cannot underestimate the threat posed by Juventus.

Aussie punters will undoubtedly be supporting Foord and her teammates given they are renowned for wagering on sports stars from the country.

Betting platforms such as SterlingParker will be inundated with wagers on the upcoming games as Aussies back Foord to deliver the goods.

However, Juve will be eager to upset the odds. They are unbeaten in Serie A Women this season and will provide formidable opposition for the Gunners.

The WSL Title Race

While progress in the Champions League would be welcome, Arsenal’s primary focus is mounting a sustained challenge for the Women’s Super League title.

Eight points from their opening five games has left them in danger of losing touch with Man City, Chelsea and Manchester United at the top of the standings.

Slegers has three crucial matches in November to navigate, and she will be looking to use these games to close the gap on Arsenal’s main rivals.

Arsenal travel to face Man United on November 3. The Red Devils are in third position with 10 points. A win for the Gunners would set the tone for the month and restore confidence.

Brighton & Hove Albion are next on the agenda five days later. They are punching above their weight in fourth position. However, Arsenal could leapfrog them with a win.

The final league fixture during the month is against bitter arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur on November 16. Given local pride is at stake, this is a must-win game for the Gunners.

A minimum seven-point haul from the next three fixtures would keep Arsenal in contention in the WSL ands set the stage for the rest of the season.

Dropping more points would further jeopardise their title ambitions and potentially scupper their hopes of luring Cushing back to the WSL.