We were beaten 2-1 by Chelsea in the Barclays Women's Super League on Saturday afternoon.
First-half goals from Mayra Ramirez and Sandy Baltimore put the Blues ahead at Emirates Stadium, before Caitlin Foord pulled one back for us.
Beth Mead headed the ball onto the roof of the net in the second minute after a Foord cross caused a coming together in the Chelsea defence, before Emily Fox got back to concede a corner at the other end by blocking an effort from Ramirez.
We didn't properly clear the set-piece and Millie Bright headed the ball to Ramirez, who overhead kicked it past Daphne van Domselaar for 1-0.
Patient build-up play saw us create an opening for Kim Little, who fired first time over the bar on her left foot from the edge of the area, but Sandy Baltimore made it 2-0 to the visitors from a Lauren James cross moments later.
Foord drove into the penalty area, full of attacking intent and desire, only to see her shot deflected over the bar for a corner, before Leah Williamson gave away possession and Guro Reiten crossed for James to volley over.
After a Katie McCabe corner was hooked wide by Williamson, Alessia Russo had a trio of opportunities. Mead's corner was flicked on by Lotte Wubben-Moy, but Chelsea cleared the danger on each occasion.
We were back in the game on the brink of half-time as Foord showed good footwork to beat Lucy Bronze close to the byline before curling a shot in off the far post.
McCabe curled a free-kick over the bar after Little was fouled just outside the area and we went into the half-time break behind.
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd got a shot away early in the second half following a powerful run from Ramirez, but Van Domselaar was equal to it, before a McCabe free-kick was headed wide of the bottom left corner by Wubben-Moy.
McCabe's 66th-minute cross was touched behind by Kadeisha Buchanan as we chased an equaliser, and Frida Maanum came on for Mead as our first substitute.
Van Domselaar did well to dive to her right and deny Aggie Beever-Jones, and our goalkeeper then got both hands behind a long-range effort from Kaneryd.
Wubben-Moy missed the target with a header over the bar from a McCabe corner before we made our second change with Kyra Cooney-Cross and Stina Blackstenius coming on for Little and Mariona Caldentey.
Maanum curled towards goal with ten minutes left on the clock but it was too soft to trouble Hannah Hampton. We then came agonisingly close to an equaliser in the 85th minute as McCabe's cree-kick was volleyed onto the bar by Blackstenius.
Into six minutes of added time at the end of the second half, another McCabe delivery was headed away by Bright and fired back towards goal from Russo, but the shot was straight at Hampton who parried it clear.
Beever-Jones went through on goal in the dying embers but a save from Van Domselaar kept Chelsea's lead to one, before a ball over the top to Blackstenius earned us a late corner, but Chelsea counter-attacked from it and saw out the win.
LINE-UPS
Arsenal XI
By Arsenal
October 14, 2024