Following the resignation of Jonas Eidevall earlier this week, Arsenal Women are on the hunt for a new coach. In our Arsenal Women Weekly Substack Newsletter on Wednesday, I wrote about how Eidevall’s appointment in 2021 corrected a lot of the issues we saw that led his predecessor Joe Montemurro to resign at the end of the 2020-21 season.
But in correcting some of those issues against the bigger opponents and playing effectively against a high press, some of the strengths of Montemurro’s management- the freedom and fluidity of the attack and the ability to beat the teams from the bottom half of the table comfortably- were lost. A firmer playing identity will be a big part of the next coach’s responsibility.
Under Eidevall, Arsenal were very strong in the big games because he was a very good tactical micromanager from the dugout and strong in preparing against opponent’s strengths. He was good at making in-game adjustments and adapting his team selections according to the opponent. After the recent 2-2 draw with Manchester City, Eidevall spoke about how much he loves coaching in the bigger games.
‘In a game like this there are different phases and that is part of what makes a game like this so stimulating. I hope it is stimulating as a player, it is certainly stimulating as a coach…You are constantly taking in information, making decisions, understanding what part of the game plan we execute in the right moment, being good in communication and communicating things in the right way to the players. It is a state of alertness.’
The issue was far more in games where there wasn’t a lot of tactical micromanagement necessary, where teams would sit eight players in their penalty area and invite Arsenal to break them down. In those games, you need a firm playing style and principles to break teams down and Arsenal just never quite got there under Jonas. If the new manager can combine the best qualities of Montemurro and Eidevall’s Arsenal teams, that…
Source link : https://arseblog.com/2024/10/the-in-tray-for-arsenal-womens-next-manager/
Author : Tim Stillman
Publish date : 2024-10-17 12:00:00
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