QUICK v TRICKY – Arsenal v Brighton FA Cup preview
Brighton and Hove Albion visit Arsenal at Meadow Park this Sunday for a clash in the quarter-finals of the Women’s FA Cup. Roos Schelen hears from both head coaches ahead of the match.
The two sides met earlier in the season in the WSL. Back then, in October (above), it was a Brighton own-goal that sealed the Gunners’ narrow 1-0 victory. Brighton head coach Dario Vidosic (below, left) feels his side can look back at that meeting positively.
“Earlier in the season we had a very good game at the Emirates. So, you know, there’s a lot that we can take confidence from. But you know, by the time the weekend comes, it’s a new game, new challenge and it’s one that we’re definitely looking forward to,” he says.
What they expect...
Vidosic speaks highly of the Gunners and is aware that their threat is always imminent.
“Arsenal is always a tricky one because they can keep the ball, but they can also hit you very, very quickly. I think also when you play away from home with their crowd, with the support, that if you do concede, that can very quickly turn into two, three, as was evidenced in the North London Derby, where, you know, I think Alessia [Russo] has a very quick hat trick and the game can quickly get away from you”, Vidosic reflects.
Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers (below, right) says that Arsenal have prepared for a multitude of scenarios, as Brighton tend to play in different ways depending on the game and opponent.
Slegers: “they want to possess the ball, they want to rotate, want to create overloads, they want to press high. But we’ve also seen that they have specific game plans for specific games, so we’re also expecting something that we might not know about. But, yeah, they like to spend time on the ball and they’re very front-footed, very quick in their counter-press as well”.
Hard to break down
Arsenal are currently the best defensive team in the WSL, with only 12 goals conceded. Tottenham Hotspur showed that Arsenal can be broken down when they managed to put two goals in the back of Arsenal’s net last weekend.
Asked where he sees chances to hurt Arsenal, Vidosic isn’t giving too much away. He does say that he sees some opportunities, but emphasises that Brighton have to get it right in all thirds of the pitch.
Lately, Arsenal have dealt with some absences and injuries, especially in defence, and have therefore rotated personnel in the back line quite a lot. Their defensive performances have still been strong. Slegers says that is down to a multitude of factors.
“I think we work at a high level with the staff, so the analysts and Aaron D’Antino, who is very detailed with the defensive side of our game.
“We work really hard together with the players to build good game plans and have a really strong game model and clarity in how we want to defend”, Slegers explains.
She continues: “And that, in combination with what behaviours we want to see on the pitch and what’s our mentality in those moments, has been really strong.
“But then, again, the ownership of the players to be prepared to understand the role in all phases of the game has been really good. So the investment of the players has been really high.”
FA Cup history
Arsenal are the side that have won the FA Cup the most, but it has been 10 years since they last won it. Meanwhile, the Seagulls have never won the competition.
Vidosic speaks with his team about winning:
“We always talk about that – trying to be the first team to make that history for the club and bring the first piece of silverware,” Vidosic said.
Later, he adds: “The girls should be excited by this challenge. They are facing one of the best four clubs in Europe. That alone should give us energy.
“If we can get a positive result it takes us one step closer to what’s the funnest day: a cup final at Wembley.”
Team news
Brighton have a clean bill of health but will have to miss Rosa Kafaji, who is ineligible to play against her parent club Arsenal. Arsenal will not have Steph Catley and Leah Williamson available, due to injury. Kyra Cooney-Cross remains in Australia to be with her family.
This will likely mean that Arsenal play a centre-back pairing of Lotte Wubben-Moy and Laia Codina, but we’ve seen lately that Katie McCabe can slot into that left centre-back role as well.
The match kicks off at 1pm BST on Sunday, April 5th. It will be shown live on TNT Sports and HBO Max.
