Barcelona put on a spectacular performance as they beat Arsenal Women 4-0 at the Emirates. The Spanish side won the first leg 4-1 in their first group game while Arsenal won their next three group games of the Champions League. Aitana Bonmati and Jennifer Hermoso scored before the half-hour mark before Fridolina Rolfo made it three in first-half stoppage time. Hermoso scored her second off the night in the 75th minute to complete the rout.
“Of course, the defeat is down to many things including the team selection. One thing we must have is a defensive structure with regards to the roles and responsibilities that need to be performed. Another one is in the offense, to try to get more possession and to play out under high pressure.” Arsenal Women manager Jonas Eidavall said after the loss to Barcelona. “We need to think about the qualities we have in the squad and work out whether it’s best to use them from the start of games or towards the end. Obviously, it’s hard to argue when you lose 4-0 that you made the right choices but the idea was very clear. The players worked very hard to try to execute it.”
“Arsenal are likely to go through because they have Hoffenheim next but it’s been a really disappointing week for them when you consider they also lost the FA Cup final to Chelsea. You can lose any cup final but it was the manner of that defeat which will have hurt them the most.” former Arsenal player Rachel Yankey said. “Tonight, they were at the Emirates with a good crowd there. Yes, they were playing against the Champions League winners from last season, but you could just see the gulf in quality. Everything Barcelona did was crisp and they scored some fantastic team goals.”
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