Arsenal Women have started their Champions League campaign with three points, but they left it incredibly late against HB Køge at Meadow Park.

Mariona Caldentey’s stoppage-time penalty eventually secured a 1-0 win after Selina Cerci drove into the box and forced the challenge, but the numbers tell you plenty about the 90 minutes that came before it: 70% possession, 21 shots and only two on target.

So why are Arsenal still finding it so difficult to turn all of that possession and attacking territory into good chances?

In this episode, Roberto looks at Arsenal’s decision-making in the final third, another impressive performance from Smilla Holmberg, the directness Kyra Cooney-Cross brought to midfield, Chloe Kelly’s threat and why Cerci offered something different when she finally arrived.

There’s also credit for an extremely well-organised HB Køge side and a promising first Arsenal start for Anneke Borbe.

Arsenal have the three points. Now they need to find the goals.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal Women’s Champions League campaign starts tonight as Danish side HB Køge visit Meadow Park, and this feels like the perfect opportunity for Renée Slegers to start using the depth of the squad she’s built.

HB Køge arrive in excellent form. They’re top of the Danish league, have won seven of their opening eight matches and came through Champions League qualifying unbeaten, including a 2-1 aggregate victory over PSV Eindhoven. So Arsenal should expect to win, but this isn’t a game to take lightly.

In this episode, Roberto looks at who HB Køge are, where they can hurt Arsenal and what Arsenal need to do to start their European campaign with three points.

Then we get into the team selection.

Does Selina Cerci finally start through the middle? Is it time to bring Géraldine Reuteler into midfield? Could Smilla Holmberg start again after changing the game at the weekend? And what would an Arsenal attack built around getting earlier deliveries into Cerci look like?

Plus, Roberto picks his Arsenal starting XI, with plenty of rotation and a few combinations we’ve been waiting to see.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal Women have dropped four points from consecutive home games, following a 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace with a 1-1 draw against Manchester United at the Emirates.

Smilla Holmberg's stoppage-time volley rescued a point, but after going back through the game, the numbers and both managers' post-match comments, the bigger question isn't simply why Arsenal are struggling against low blocks.

Arsenal forced 18 high turnovers against United but produced only three shots from them and no shots from fast breaks. Are Arsenal allowing opponents enough time to organise the very defensive blocks they're then struggling to break down?

In this full match review, Roberto looks at Arsenal's attacking tempo, Renée Slegers' tactical plan, the Russo and Blackstenius combination, the timing and impact of the substitutions and why Holmberg changed the game.

There's also an excellent performance from Misa Rodríguez, credit for Manchester United's defensive display and a look at the potential solutions available to Arsenal as the games continue to come quickly.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

INSTANT REACTION: Smilla Holmberg’s brilliant stoppage-time volley rescued a point for Arsenal Women as Manchester United held the Gunners to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates.

But after last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace, that’s now four points dropped from consecutive home games and some familiar questions are beginning to appear.

In this quick post-match reaction, Roberto looks at Manchester United’s disciplined defensive performance, why Player of the Match Verónica Medina caused Arsenal problems, the impact Holmberg made from the right and another impressive performance from Misa Rodríguez.

There’s also the timing of Renée Slegers’ substitutions, Selina Cerci’s late penalty shout and the question we’ll come back to in the full match review: are teams beginning to find a repeatable way of frustrating this Arsenal side?

This is the immediate reaction rather than the full analysis. We’ll be back with a complete Arsenal Women 1–1 Manchester United match review after going back through the whole game.

Follow Arsenal Women: Trailblazers for independent, fan-led Arsenal Women news, reaction, analysis and the stories behind the players.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal Women are back at the Emirates on Saturday as Manchester United arrive in North London with both sides looking for a response after frustrating weekends.

Arsenal somehow came away from Crystal Palace with a 0-0 draw despite 30 shots and 79 per cent possession, while Manchester United suffered a 5-0 defeat at home to Chelsea following their opening-day loss to London City Lionesses.

So, naturally, everybody is completely calm about things two games into the season...

In this Trailblazers match preview, Roberto looks at what we can sensibly take from those opening results, Renée Slegers' latest team and injury news, what Eva Olid may change at Manchester United and how Saturday's game could develop tactically.

We also look at the possible returns of Géraldine Reuteler and Selina Cerci, why Lisa Baum could be important again, whether Olivia Smith should start and the case for pairing Smilla Holmberg with Baum on Arsenal's right.

Plus, Roberto picks his Arsenal starting XI, predicts Manchester United's team and, against his better judgement, gives a score prediction.

Can Arsenal turn last weekend's dominance into goals and get back to winning ways at the Emirates?

Listen now and let us know your starting XI and score prediction.

Follow Arsenal Women: Trailblazers for independent, fan-led Arsenal Women news, match previews, reaction, analysis and the stories behind the players.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the 50th episode of Arsenal Women: Trailblazers, there was only one player I wanted to celebrate, the member of the current Arsenal team who is the embodiment of the word Trailblazer.

Kim Little.

She arrived at Arsenal as a quiet 17-year-old from Mintlaw in 2008, so unnoticed that some of her new teammates initially thought she was simply Julie Fleeting’s friend.

Nearly two decades later, she has surpassed 400 Arsenal appearances, become the club’s record holder for Women’s Super League appearances, captained Arsenal to the Champions League, and established herself as one of the greatest players in the club’s history.

But the numbers only tell part of Kim Little’s story.

In this special long-form Trailblazers audio documentary, we go right back to the beginning: growing up in Mintlaw, practicing alone in her dad’s freezing garage, travelling across Scotland to train with Hibernian and working on a Tesco checkout while scoring 88 goals in senior football before she was 18.

We follow Kim to Arsenal, Seattle and Melbourne, through her extraordinary years as one of the best midfielders in the world, 140 appearances for Scotland, an ACL rupture, a broken leg, World Cup heartbreak and the evolution from prolific young goalscorer into the player Arsenal have trusted to control their biggest matches.

And we look beyond the football.

Kim has spoken with unusual openness about her need for solitude, her thoughts on leadership, the periods of depression she experienced during her career, and why noticing the people around her has become such an important part of the captain she is today.

Then there is Lisbon.

Seventeen years after first joining Arsenal, Kim finally walked into a Champions League final and helped Arsenal beat Barcelona to become champions of Europe.

This is the story of Kim Little, but it’s also a story about leadership without performance, ambition without ego and why you don’t need to be the loudest person in the room to become the person everybody trusts.

Episode 50 of Arsenal Women: Trailblazers.

Read the complete written version and find all our Arsenal Women coverage at arsenalwomentrailblazers.com.

Follow Arsenal Women: Trailblazers on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers and join the conversation.

If you enjoy our player documentaries, follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share this episode with another Arsenal supporter.

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal had 30 shots, 79 per cent possession and hit the crossbar twice, but Crystal Palace left the Emirates with a point after an extraordinary defensive performance.

Having recorded my raw reaction immediately after the match, I’ve now watched it again and the full picture isn’t quite as bleak as it felt at full-time.

We examine how Palace crowded the spaces around Alessia Russo, the opportunities Arsenal created and why Lisa Baum, Georgia Stanway and Mariona Caldentey offered plenty of encouragement despite the result.

There’s also a closer look at Renée Slegers’ substitutions, what Olivia Smith, Stina Blackstenius, Kim Little, Caitlin Foord and Frida Maanum brought from the bench and whether Arsenal’s problem was creativity, finishing or simply meeting a brilliantly organised defence and an inspired Pauline Peyraud-Magnin.

Finally, we consider the concern that Arsenal may be repeating last season’s familiar mistakes, round up the rest of the WSL weekend and explain why this result feels more like an early warning than a crisis.

Links for listeners

Read more from Trailblazers:

https://www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com/

Follow Arsenal Women Trailblazers on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/arsenalwomentrailblazers/

Arsenal’s official match report:

https://www.arsenal.com/news/report-arsenal-women-0-0-crystal-palace-a9WRZ9V1hhBY

Official match centre and statistics:

https://www.cpfc.co.uk/match/2674495/women/english-women-s-super-league/2026-27/arsenal-women-vs-crystal-palace-women-2026-09-13/

Current WSL table:

https://www.wslfootball.com/standings/wsl

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arsenal Women have dropped their first points of the new WSL season after being held to a goalless draw by newly promoted Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium.

Roberto has just returned from the match and switched on the microphone to record his immediate, completely unscripted reaction to what he saw and felt inside the stadium.

This isn’t the polished match review or the final verdict after watching everything back. It’s the raw response to a deeply frustrating afternoon, the performance Arsenal produced, the questions it raises and the moments that stood out from inside the Emirates.

A fuller analysis will follow once there has been time to rewatch the match and separate the immediate frustration from what actually happened on the pitch.

Were you at the Emirates or watching from home? Join the conversation with Trailblazers on Instagram and tell us what you made of the performance.

READ AND LISTEN FURTHER

Arsenal v Crystal Palace preview:

https://www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com/arsenal-women-crystal-palace-wsl-preview/

Trailblazers website:

https://www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/arsenalwomentrailblazers/

Official match centre:

https://www.cpfc.co.uk/match/2674495/women/english-women-s-super-league/2026-27/arsenal-women-vs-crystal-palace-women-2026-09-13/

Arsenal Women: Trailblazers is a regular fan podcast dedicated to Arsenal Women. Join host Roberto Revilla for latest news, match previews and reports, tactical talking points and the stories that make Arsenal Women true trailblazers.

Connect with the show on Instagram @arsenalwomentrailblazers

Find us on BlueSky Social @arsenalwomentb

Our website can be found at www.arsenalwomentrailblazers.com

Intro/Outro Music thanks to raspberrymusic from Pixabay

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.