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40 min: This is now a mountain for Leuven to climb. Yes they don’t only have this game, they have a reverse leg next week, but to get three goals back on this Arsenal team is a big ask.
GOAL! Arsenal 2-0 Leuven (Olivia Smith)
38 min: Kelly does really well down the left and she crosses to Smith who taps home.
37 min: There was a beautiful ball played forward to Hermans and she beats Codina but Williamson comes back across to wrestle her off of the ball.
36 min: Arsenal are really starting to hum as a team now, some lovely intricate play finds Maanum but her shot is wide.
34 min: Arsenal win a corner and it is McCabe who delivers the ball, Maanum gets a touch in but she can’t control and again Leuven can relieve the pressure.
33 min: I do like to play ‘cliche commentary bingo’ when watching football. So far we have had ‘this game is far from over’, are there any others I should keep an ear out for? Let me know on email. On pitch Arsenal break and Smith is in a good position but her shot is straight at the keeper.
31 min: Everaerts gets a talking to from the referee after she fouls McCabe and Arsenal get into the box from the resulting free kick. However, Leuven again defends it well.
29 min: McCabe’s corner delivery is good, it finds Williamson but her header is straight out of play.
28 min: The door keeps knocking as Arsenal continually peel forward and the latest sees them win a corner.
26 min: Fox does well down the left as Arsenal look to double their led but she is tripped by Janssen and so the visitors have a free kick. McCabe and Kelly stands over the set piece but it is the Ireland international sends it in. It’s well defended and the chance is gone.
24 min: Commentary saying that was a little too easy and I have to agree, they didn’t challenge Maanum at all which is disappointing after such strong defence so far.
GOAL! Arsenal 1-0 Leuven (Frida Maanum)
22 min: Leuven lost the ball and a slow build sees Foord feed Maanum and tap home.
21 min: Arsenal are creating more and more chances as McCabe gets it into the area, Leuven clear and start to make a break but Fox takes down Reynders and receives a yellow card.
19 min: Leuven breaks and the crowd comes to life, Conijnenberg is fed but her shot is way over the ball. Those are the threats Arsenal need to be wary of. The Gunners immediately hit back but Foord’s shot is saved.
17 min: Arsenal keep up the pressure and Fox does really well to send it into the box but it’s cleared.
16 min: Arsenal win a free kick with McCabe blocked on the way through to the final third. Kelly stands over the set piece and the delivery is straight at the keeper.
14 min: Pelova floats a fantastic ball to Foord but her pass has too much on it and Seynhaeve collects. Possession once again exchanges hands.
12 min: The Gunners get into the box but Leuven expertly smother the attack, forcing them back to the halfway line.
11 min: Arsenal win it back and are patient with their play. The Belgians are compact and are defending well so the visitors are finding it a little difficult to puncture.
9 min: Possession goes back and forth but Leuven peel forward, Janssen looks to cross in but Williamson sees it out.
7 min: Some may underestimate Leuven but they are top of the Belgian league and so they are in good form. So far they are just struggling to maintain possession and put in a meaningful attack.
6 min: Simon Yates has got in touch to settle the Jaffa Cake debate:
Amazingly this question was settled by a tax court as it was relevant to VAT. The answer is Jaffa Cakes are cakes, the reasoning being that cakes go dry when you keep them too long while biscuits go soggy. (I am not making this up.) Though personally I’ve never really had a problem with Jaffa Cakes surviving long enough to go off, one way or another…
Thank you for this Simon, it’s valuable information to have to prove to my friend that I am in fact right. Back on the pitch and Leuven are yet to put a stamp on this game.
4 min: The hosts have been forced into defence early on with a chance coming into the box but it was well cleared. The Gunners come again but Mannum’s shot is saved.
2 min: It is Leah Williamson’s third start of the season as she continues to build back from her knee injury she sustained in the summer at the Euros. Both teams settling into this one.
Kick-off: Leuven 0-0 Arsenal
Here we go.
I would love to hear from you. I was discussing with a friend the other day if a Jaffa Cake is a cake or a biscuit, I am firmly on the cake side and she was adamant it was a biscuit. Please get in touch so we can settle the argument, you can email me to let me know your thoughts.
Catch up on our Women’s Football Weekly podcast while you wait for this match to get underway:
Suzanne Wrack spoke to Katie McCabe last month and it’s a great interview, have a read to get more of an insight into the Arsenal star:
Whoever comes out on top over the next two legs between these two will play Chelsea. The Blues have reached the semi-finals in the past three seasons but have never won the trophy.
Arsenal travelled to Leuven in December when the two clubs played one another in the group stage. The Gunners came out 3-0 winners that day, you can recap the action here:
Want to know more about the new format? Here’s a feature for you:
Here is Arsenal boss Renée Slegers on why Stina Blackstenius and Beth Mead are not involved: “Stina and Beth didn’t travel. Stina still has issues with her calf and Beth needs some time to offload her shin.”
Here is that Leuven team news, the side could not play Veefkind as she is suspended.
Leuven: Seynhaeve, Everaerts, Biesmans, Mertens, Janssen, Pusztai, Hermans, Kujpers, Reynders, Conijnenberg, Bosteels.
Bench: Lammertijn, Rispens, Nagy, Papatheodorou, Van Besauw, De Ceuster, Heremans, Neyrinck, Dekker, Van Holderbeke
The team news is in. Arsenal are without Beth Mead and Stina Blackstenius, more on that shortly, and despite being a few attacking players down Alessia Russo starts from the bench.
Arsenal: Van Domselaar, Fox, Williamson, Codina, McCabe, Pelova, Caldentey, Maanum, Kelly, Foord, Smith
Bench: Votikova, Williams, Wubben-Moy, Catley, Holmberg, Cooney-Cross, Little, Russo.
I am just tracking down the Leuven news, bare with me.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the Women’s Champions League play-off game between Leuven and Arsenal. This is the first leg of the play-off with the second being hosted by Arsenal next week.
The play-offs are new to the women’s competition this year and it comes after the groups were scrapped in favour of the league. The top four automatically qualified for the quarter-finals, while the other spots will be decided by these play-offs.
Arsenal are the defending champions and so it will be a difficult task for Leuven to come out on top but today’s match is the perfect time to put some light between them and the Gunners. If they come off the losers in this encounter, overturning that in London will be a mountain to climb.
The team news will be up shortly before kick-off at 5.45pm GMT. So stay tuned for all of the updates and some build-up to this game which should be a cracker.
