A Big Weekend for Arsenal!
Neal Thurman • July 28, 2025
If you read my first post, you’ll know that I was planning a leisurely summer of introducing you to Arsenal and preparing to watch the upcoming men’s and women’s seasons. That’s still the plan, but the events of this past weekend are too important to Arsenal to maintain a slavish devotion to an editorial schedule of my own making.
As I mentioned in
my second post, many of the Arsenal women made their mark in the Women’s European Championships in Switzerland. While it was a fun tournament overall, the semi-finals and finals, with key performances from Arsenal players, were notable enough to elevate the tournament into an emergency column. (As an added bonus, I’ll throw in a few notes about the men’s pre-season results from their first two matches in Singapore.)
Women’s Euro Headliners
The setup for Sunday’s final had its roots in two matches: Spain’s Women’s World Cup win over England two summers ago, and Arsenal’s Champions League victory over Barcelona in May. Spain’s World Cup victory launched a potential dynasty on the international side, supplanting England’s Euro championship in 2022 as the most significant development in European women’s football. Spain’s World Cup winners were fueled by a core of players from Barcelona’s Champions League winners from 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Arsenal, with a core of players from the England squad, faced an uphill battle in the Champions League final and never looked like the better team despite ultimately winning the match. The feel for the Euro Final was very much the same. Could England, with their Arsenal core, contain Spain with their Barcelona core?
The match played out very much the same way as the Euro Final. Spain maintained most of the possession and looked like the better side, while England kept the ball out of the net and reduced Spain’s advantage to an academic one.
Goals Straight from North London
While Arsenal features six England players, their member on the Spanish side, Mariona Caldentey, was first on the scoreboard on Sunday. The former Barcelona forward’s tally came from a thundering header in the 25th minute.
On the other side of halftime, it was Caldentey’s Arsenal teammates who crafted the equalizer. Chloe Kelly crossed for Alessia Russo, who went for placement rather than power with her header and found the back of the net behind Spanish keeper Cata Coll.
The balance of the 90 minutes and both periods of extra time went by without another goal, setting up a penalty shootout for the title. Arsenal forwards Beth Mead and Caldentey both had penalty attempts saved along with Gunners defender Leah Williamson and two-time Balon D’Or winner Aitana Bonmati. After Salma Paraluello missed her kick wide it set up Gunner Chloe Kelly for the winner, which she dispatched with aplomb.
Between the honors earned by Spain and Barcelona, there is no denying their quality, but the England side, powered by a core of Arsenal players, are now two-time defending European Champions to go along with the Gunners' Champions League title. The Arsenal women have consistently displayed the mentality necessary to prevail on the biggest stage against incredibly talented opponents.
Notes from Singapore
While the Women’s Euros were playing out in Switzerland, the men traveled to Asia to start their pre-season schedule. Pre-season matches, by their nature, are disjointed and don’t make for the best entertainment because coaches are getting players into shape, trying combinations and tactics, and rotating 22+ players into a 90-minute match that usually only accommodates 13 or 14 players. Despite those realities, there were some positive takeaways worth passing along:
- Everyone Stayed Healthy. Job one in pre-season is to get everyone to the first match of the season in good health. The Arsenal men’s team has come through the first two matches in good shape. We’re still waiting to see a few players for the first time, with Gabriel and Jurian Timber still recovering from injuries late last season, and new arrivals Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres not yet with the team. Otherwise, everyone is training and playing in the pre-season.
- Zubimendi Impresses. Martin Zubimendi is the rare case of a high-level international player whose move was completed early in the transfer window, and who didn’t have any summer obligations for his country. As a result, he was available to participate in Arsenal’s entire pre-season program. On early evidence, he is going to be a great addition. He isn’t going to show up in many highlight packages, but he is assured on the ball, and kept the attack moving in the half he played against each of AC Milan and Newcastle.
- One for the Future. Arsenal’s academy has been producing talent at a high level recently, with Bukayo Saka, Myles Lewis-Skelly, and Ethan Nwaneri the highest profile graduates currently starring with the first team. The next in line may well be Max Dowman. Participating in his first pre-season with the first team, the 15-year-old has very much looked the part against high level opposition. His first appearance against Milan showed some flashes without any end product, but his second appearance against Newcastle saw the precocious teen draw a penalty and force a strong save from the Magpies’ goalkeeper. It is probably too much to expect a significant role in Premier League and Champions League action for Dowman this season, but he’ll be one of the main reasons I tune in to watch their early round League Cup and FA Cup matches. He looks like he might be another special player coming off the Colney assembly line.
Next up for the men will be the first North London Derby played outside of the UK, as Arsenal face off against Tottenham from Hong Kong on Thursday, July 31 at 7:30 AM Eastern Time.
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How is it April? Still, the fact remains that we are into the home stretch for Arsenal’s domestic and European campaigns. With the men back from the last international break of the season and the women steaming toward the finish line of the season, let’s check in with where things stand for each and what the important dates are in the run-in. Three Trophies Still Possible for the Men The biggest, but certainly not best, thing that happened on the men’s team front since last time I posted was that the League Cup Final happened. It, uh, did not go well. Arsenal dominated the first 20 minutes or so of the match and had a few presentable chances but couldn’t convert. After that, City were the better team and deserved the win. City’s first goal was something of a fluke with cup competition goalkeeper Kepa letting a high ball slip through his fingers to be tapped in by Nico O’Reilly who was in the right place at the right time. Did Kepa have to stretch to reach a high ball? Yes, but it certainly wasn’t so high that he should have struggled to control it and let the danger pass. It would be easy to blame the loss on that mistake but the rest of the match could definitely have been worse than City scoring a second goal. Arsenal mounted next to no attack and really seemed to miss having one of Odegaard or Eze as partner to Declan Rice in the center of midfield. Kai Havertz has never looked comfortable at Arsenal when asked to be a creative force in midfield. He has been best as a change of pace center forward or in the role currently being played by Declan Rice where he is a runner, secondary creator, and can make late runs for shots at the edge of the box. Unfortunately, due to injuries to Eze and Odegaard and Ethan Nwaneri being out on loan, Arteta’s choices were limited. If it had been me, I would have thought about moving Saka into the Odegaard/Eze spot with Madueke on the right and one of Martinelli or Trossard on the left. They got there eventually but it wasn’t until O’Reilly scored his second in the 65th minute. It is never great to lose a final. If you’re there, you might as well win it. That said, the goals for the season are higher than that. With the Premier League, the Champions League, and the FA Cup still available for the taking and Arsenal the favorite or joint favorite in all three, there are bigger fish to fry. If they are successful in some or all of those endeavors no one will remember that they lost the League Cup Final. If that loss was an indicator that they are again going to fall agonizingly short of the finish line, well, the League Cup loss won’t be the thing we mourn but it might be seen as an early warning sign that we should have taken more seriously when it happened. Injuries The big question as we look forward to the run-in is how healthy the team will be coming down the stretch. The international break so a load of high profile Arsenal players not participate for their countries in friendlies with injuries sighted as the reason. We know that Noni Madueke came out of England’s first friendly of the break with a leg brace on as a “precaution”. Saka and Rice didn’t even go to camp at first and then, after Madueke came off injured in the first match, they were withdrawn. Also withdrawn with various statements related to injury/treatment were Saliba, Gabrielle, Zubamendi, Hincapie, Trossard, Timber, and Odegaard. Now, if all of those players are actually injured, Arsenal are screwed as that is most of the starting eleven and some key reserves along with Mikel Merino who we know will be missing through through April at least. The good news is that Odegaard, Rice, Saka, Zubamendi, Saliba, and Gabriel at least are more their international managers wanting to give them a rest knowing that it is more important for them to be rested for the run-in and not completely burnt out heading into the World Cup. What’s Next? The injury situation is where Arsenal’s good fortune in their cup competitions will help them. The next two matches on their agenda are Championship side Southampton in the FA Cup this Saturday and Sporting Lisbon in midweek. Both matches are on the road but Arsenal should be favored even if they don’t have access to their entire first choice eleven. A line-up of Raya, Ben White, Saliba, Gabriel, Califiore, Zubamendi, Rice, Odegaard, Saka, Martinelli, and Gyokeres against Sporting with a few reserves like Norgaard, Havertz, or Dowman sprinkled in against Southampton should get the job done while a few of the others who actually sustained injuries are given a little extra time to recover. The big matches will come mid-month when the Premier League resumes with Bournemouth at the Emirates and a trip to Manchester City on either side of the home leg of the Champions League quarterfinal against Lisbon. The Women Are Technically Still Alive in Three Competitions Like the men, the Arsenal women are alive in the FA Cup, the WSL, and the Champions League. The only difference is that the WSL title is pretty close to out of reach. The FA Cup and the Champions League are still very much on the table. The second half of the WSL season has gone much better for Arsenal than the first half did. They haven’t dropped points in the league since the nil-nil draw with Manchester United on January 10th. Dropped points against the Red Devils (two nil-nil draws), Tottenham (nil-nil in November), and a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa in September are what held them back along with Manchester City setting a pace that allowed no faltering. Going one win and one loss against City and Chelsea is reasonable. Even dropping points in at least one match with United is reasonable. The dropped points against Spurs, who are better this season but shouldn’t be at Arsenal’s level, and Villa, who are just mediocre couldn’t happen this season if the Gunners expected to be in the WSL race until the end. Where will they finish? They currently sit 3rd, 11 points behind City and 2 points behind Chelsea, with two matches in hand (both of which they should win given the opposition). The top three finishers qualify for next season’s Champions League so even if they are highly unlikely to win the title, they should easily achieve their secondary goal from the league of staying in Europe’s biggest competition. The Cups Even with the league trophy not likely to be coming their way, the FA Cup and the Champions League are still very much available to be had. There isn’t a great deal to say about the FA Cup yet. The quarterfinals are coming up this weekend with Arsenal given the relatively easy draw of Brighton and Hove Albion. Chelsea against Tottenham, Manchester City against Birmingham City, and Liverpool against Charlton Athletic make up the other three quarterfinal match-ups with City, Arsenal, and Chelsea heavily favored to move on. All three will be hoping to draw the winner of Liverpool and Charlton in the semi-final. The Champions League will present a little more of a challenge at the next hurdle. Arsenal finished off Chelsea 3-2 on aggregate despite losing the return leg 1-0. Next up is Lyon who beat Arsenal 2-1 in the group stage in September. I can’t say I have followed Lyon closely this season but over time they have been one of the best women’s sides in the world and they beat Arsenal 2-1 in the group stages in September. Arsenal are certainly playing better now than they were in September but there won’t be anything easy about repeating their Champions League title. If they can clear the Lyon hurdle in the semi-finals, they will face the winner of the other semi-final between Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Bayern also beat Arsenal by a goal (3-2) in the group stages so they won’t be a pushover. Barcelona and the Gunners haven’t reprised their Champions League final yet this season but Barca are coming off a 12-2 aggregate drubbing of Spanish rivals Real Madrid in the quarterfinals and are generally thought to be the best women’s side in the world. Down the Stretch What a great time to be an Arsenal supporter! Both the men’s and women’s sides are competing on multiple fronts and it would be shocking if they didn’t come away with more silverware to add to the Champions League and Club World Cup titles the women have secured in the past year. The next two months won’t be easy on the blood pressure and may require some hard decisions between work obligations and watching mid-week afternoon matches but what a blast it will be.
Remember earlier in the season when I mentioned an insanely talented 15-year-old waiting at the fringes of Arsenal’s first team squad? Well, this weekend the now-16-year-old Max Dowman stamped his mark on the title race. While both the men’s and women’s teams enjoyed an outstanding weekend, Dowman’s dramatic arrival headlines the recap. Things have been getting tense for the Arsenal men. Regardless of recent outcomes, Mikel Arteta’s side have made precious few matches look easy. The attack has been ponderous. The defense, while still the best in the Premier League by 6 goals, has become increasingly leaky. And the depth of the squad has been tested by injuries to Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Ricardo Calafiore, and Kai Havertz. With strategic buys by Manchester City in January, the pressure on Arsenal mounts. City’s acquisition of two of the best Premier League players playing outside the “Big Six” has supercharged the team’s push to catch the Gunners. Former Bournemouth standout Antoine Semenyo has been scoring for fun since arriving at the Etihad. Meanwhile, Mark Guehi, the rock in Crystal Palace’s run to the FA Cup title last season, has solidified a shaky City defense. With that in mind, entering the weekend Arsenal led City by seven points in the standings, with City down a match, and a showdown at the Etihad scheduled for mid-April. Arsenal certainly had the trickier fixture. The visit of Arteta’s former side and manager (Everton and David Moyes) has been a frustrating matchup the past couple of seasons. They managed a 1-0 victory earlier this season, but had to settle for two draws against the Toffees last season (including a nil-nil at the Emirates). City’s task appeared much easier with a trip to 18th place West Ham United. The Arsenal vs. Everton match found Arsenal struggling in the second half to break a nil-nil deadlock against a modestly-talented but persistent and well-organized opponent. Enter Max Dowman in the 74th minute. Dowman’s substitution into the match was notable for a few reasons: The situation was tense, with Arsenal in position to drop two points in the title race With the attack struggling, Arteta clearly saw Dowman as a match winner Bringing a 16-year-old attacker on for holding midfielder Martin Zubamendi would have resulted in never-ending recriminations had the outcome been different. From the moment he entered, however, an unfazed Dowman rose to the gravity of the occasion, dribbling, passing, and shooting aggressively. About 15 minutes into his appearance, his towering cross from the right flank fooled Everton and England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to find its way to Piero Hincapie deep in the box. The Ecuadoran (probably anticipating that Pickford would make contact) likely didn’t realize what came next, but the ball rebounded off him into the path of the onrushing Viktor Gyokeres, who slotted home the easiest goal he’ll likely score in Arsenal colors. One-nil to the Arsenal because the kid was aggressive and it worked out. The stadium breathed a collective sigh of relief and hunkered down to wait out the six minutes of stoppage time that stood between them and victory. A momentous play for a 16-year-old who hasn’t seen much action since September due to an ankle injury. As it turned out, Dowman had another trick up his sleeve. In the final minute of stoppage time, Everton had a corner that made Arsenal supporters around the world extremely anxious. Would victory slip through our fingers? As it turned out, no. Here’s what happened next (with credit to @takaharu_osako on IG). Two-nil to the Arsenal on a runaway from the youngest-ever goalscorer in the Premier League. And just like that, title momentum shifted firmly to North London. Throw in that City, clearly spooked by Arsenal’s late win, looked terrible at the London Stadium, only managing a draw against West Ham. A weekend that started seven points clear with nerves frayed ended nine points to the good –and with the arrival of a new hero. (If you want something else to dream on, after Saka, Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly, and Dowman, there’s another high potential star, Luis Munoz , on the way in a year or two. Yes, he’s only 14, but given the recent track record at the Hale End Academy, you should probably keep him on your radar.) A Familiar Scoreline and Result for City On most other weekends, the women would have earned top billing following a spectacular weekend of their own. Granted, London City isn’t exactly a fearsome opponent, and an element of cruise control from Renee Sleger’s side might not have made for the best watch party. (Disappointingly, Loudoun Soccer’s women’s watch party at Anchor Bar was cancelled following a reschedule to 7:55 AM Eastern.) Earlier in the season, the women were making hard work of weaker opponents after draws with Spurs and Aston Villa before Christmastime. A confident 2-0 win over London City, on the heels of a 3-0 win over Bristol City and 7-1 on aggregate against Leuven, feels like solid momentum. After a relatively slow start to her Arsenal career, Olivia Smith has been picking up steam in the goalscoring department. To make things better, Manchester City drew with Aston Villa and Tottenham lost to Everton in matches that City and Spurs would have been expected to win. With Chelsea and Manchester United still to play (Brighton and West Ham, respectively), Arsenal are in solid shape heading into the home stretch. They may be 11 points behind City in the standings but Arsenal have two matches in hand and an easier schedule. The Arsenal women still face: West Ham (H) Tottenham (H) Aston Villa (A) Leicester City (H) Everton (H) Brighton (A) Liverpool (A) They should be favored to win all seven of those matches. City’s run-in looks like this: Tottenham (H) Manchester United (A) Brighton (A) Liverpool (H) West Ham (A) While City may be favored to win each, the match with United is, by far, the most challenging match-up left for either side. If Arsenal do their business and City slip up against their cross-town rivals, all it will take is one more slip for Arsenal to have a chance to pip City to the title. Is it a great chance? No, is it a lot more likely than it was a few weeks ago? Absolutely! What’s Next? The women host West Ham at the Emirates on Saturday the 21st at 8 AM Eastern before hosting Chelsea in the first leg of their Champions League Quarter Final. The men host Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday in the return leg of their Champions League Round of 16 match-up (currently tied 1-1 after the leg in Germany), followed by the League Cup Final against Manchester City next Sunday at 12:30 Eastern. This Sunday’s Loudoun Soccer watch party at Anchor Bar is a lock, with a 12:30 PM kick off and Arsenal-themed raffles and giveaways from Club partner Soccer Post!
