Arsenal Women know how to bring home trophies, says Leah Williamson

Clinical: Vivianne Miedema scores the winner for Arsenal against Manchester City in last season’s League Cup Final at Adams Park
Arsenal FC via Getty Images
James Olley21 February 2019

Arsenal Women made a blistering beginning to the campaign but the time has now come to turn that start into silverware.

The Gunners became the first team to win their opening nine Women’s Super League matches.

A run of 15 matches unbeaten in all competitions ended in early December when a team deprived of key midfielders Kim Little and Jordan Nobbs were beaten 2-0 at Manchester City, extending a rivalry which provides an intriguing backdrop to Saturday’s League Cup Final at Bramall Lane.

Arsenal won last season’s final with a goal from Vivianne Miedema, a victory which defender Leah Williamson believes was a watershed moment under new boss Joe Montemurro.

“Everybody at Arsenal was very aware that it would be a turning point for us if we won, the 21-year-old (right) told Standard Sport. “You always want to win a final but that one meant quite a lot to us and it showed with the reaction of our players after grinding out a result.

“To perform consistently and be a really competitive team, you have to have a good philosophy and a clear understanding of what you are trying to achieve. Joe makes that extremely clear. It is a good base to put the performances in and we have grown as a team since last year’s final. The last five or six years, we haven’t been the most consistent but we’ve known how to bring home trophies because I think that is what Arsenal are about.

“We want silverware and it will be a shame this year with the way we have played and how strong we’ve been not to win anything. That’s something on our radar starting this weekend.”

In the League, City are top of the table by two points but Arsenal have two games in hand. They are due to meet again on the final day of the season. The League Cup is a competition no club other than this pair have ever won, either, with Arsenal lifting the trophy in five of the seven years it has been held. City won the other two.

Miedema is likely to play a pivotal role once again. It has been a remarkable campaign for the Dutch striker, whose tally of 16 goals is a WSL record. She signed a new long-term deal with Arsenal in December and was last month nominated for Women’s Player of the Year at the London Football Awards, a gala evening organised by Willow Foundation, staged next Thursday at Battersea Evolution.

“Viv is invaluable to us,” said Williamson. “The work she puts in is unreal. The chances she takes, the finishes… she’s shown she can finish in a whole number of different ways. I don’t like to be a one-v-one with her in training. She can score however she wants to and you are her puppet.”

Capitalising on their great start was the message Petr Cech relayed to the women’s team on a night out this week. The Arsenal men’s goalkeeper took the players to SUSHISAMBA in London and picked up the tab, as Williamson explained.

“I’m going to put it out there and say he’s one of the nicest guys in football, certainly that I’ve met,” she said.

“Although we’ve won trophies before, we’ve turned some heads within the club because of our start and his gesture is a sign of mutual respect.”

An international break follows the weekend clash and Williamson will join Phil Neville’s England side after making the squad for the SheBelieves Cup, which begins in the United States next Wednesday.

Williamson is fast becoming a regular in Neville’s setup but it is a measure of her character that she refuses to get ahead of herself.

“I don’t think this will ever change for me but I never take things for granted and don’t ever plan as if I’m going away,” she said. “In fact, my Mum always says she books things regardless in case I don’t get selected. It is a win-win situation! She’s missed me for a bit now but I think she’ll understand.”

Going away with another League Cup win would be the perfect parting gift.

Toscafund Asset Management LLP is a proud sponsor of the London Football Awards. Founded in 2000, Toscafund has grown to become a leading multiasset manager. It is based in London with additional offices in Manchester and Greenwich, Connecticut. Go to toscafund.com

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