Amid the howls of anger and against the fury of Arsenal’s comeback at the Emirates, Chelsea survived to extend their unbeaten Women’s Super League record under Sonia Bompastor to a 30th game. But were it not for two major refereeing decisions that went against the hosts, leading Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers to voice her support for the introduction of VAR in the women’s top-flight, then the reigning champions could have suffered a defeat that brought the Gunners back into the title race.
“I think we deserved to win and I think some of the goals we scored were wrong decisions,” said Alessia Russo, whose late finish, squeezed past Hannah Hampton, rescued a point for Arsenal to keep themselves within five of Chelsea. “I know the referees have a tough job, [but] it’s a high-level we’re in now, so I’m frustrated.”
Arsenal were incensed when the referee Melissa Burgin disallowed Stina Blackstenius’s equaliser for handball early in the second half; replays showed that Blackstenius had controlled the ball with her upper thigh and had safely moved her arm away before thumping her finish into the roof of Hampton’s net.
It lit the fuse for a thunderous second half at the Emirates, as Arsenal overturned a calm, superior performance from Chelsea following Alyssa Thompson’s stylish ninth-minute opener. Russo eventually pulled Arsenal level in the 87th minute, though looked offside from Frida Maanum’s precise cross. Then, Maanum appeared to be fractionally onside when she was sent through to clinically finish past Hampton and the blow the roof off the Emirates, only for the flag to be raised.
“That angle is really hard to see,” Slegers said. “For me, in retrospect, being able to see it on video, being able to pause, it’s hard for me to see. It’s really hard for the referee on the pitch in live action to see as well.”
But in the case of Blackstenius’s disallowed goal, Slegers was unequivocal. “We were very surprised because I didn’t see any players call for it,” she said. “I’ve just watched it back from one angle and it doesn’t look like a handball, so that’s frustrating. If you asked me the question now if I am in favour of VAR, I would say yes.”
The former England international Izzy Christiansen said the Gunners were “robbed”. “What they did was exceptional from start to finish in that second half,” she said. “They scored two goals that have been disallowed. That game should have finished 3-1 to Arsenal. They were two absolutely abysmal decisions.”
Having lost to Manchester City and dropped points against Manchester United and Aston Villa so far this season, Arsenal could not afford to fall to another defeat and leave Chelsea eight points clear; though the manner in which the champions started suggested they could surge through Arsenal’s press at will, with Thompson finishing off a stylish move by lifting a shot over Daphne van Domselaar.
“We created a lot of opportunities in the first half, we probably could’ve killed the game, and we score one goal, it was not enough to kill the opposition’s hope,” Bompastor said. “They stayed alive and I think in the second half it was more difficult.”
Chelsea played themselves into trouble, loose play when building the ball out from the back led to the corner in which Blackstenius through she had hammered Arsenal level. The cross was headed away by Niamh Charles but only as far as Blackstenius, who controlled with her midriff. The decision to disallow it, to the confusion of the crowd of over 50,000, gave Arsenal the fire and fury to suffocate Chelsea in the second half.
“It drove their energy and urgency and wanting more and being convinced we can score one,” Slegers said. Eventually, once Maanum was brought on, Arsenal found their finishing touch. Hampton should have done better to deny Russo’s half-volley at the back post; Maanum then kept her head and gave her no chance.
Chelsea, though, managed to survive. Manchester City now have the chance to go about them if they win against Everton on Sunday for a seventh consecutive win. Arsenal will rue that they are not two points behind. “It’s fine margins, so certain decisions become really big decisions,” Slegers accepted. “That’s out of our hands.”