BOREHAMWOOD, England — OL Lyonnes forward Melchie Dumornay showed Arsenal exactly what happens when you orchestrate your own demise against a team that is hungry to prove that they’re still one of the best in Europe.
The 22-year-old scored both goals in Lyonnes’ 2-1 win over Arsenal on Tuesday to open the UEFA Women’s Champions League. For Arsenal, defensive fragilities that have persisted since the start of the season forced them to lose their first game in the competition since claiming the UWCL title last season.
Arsenal have been their own worst enemies this season. It was not Lyonnes’ ruthless squad, their new manager Jonatan Giraldez’s tactics or their eight previous Champions League titles that led to Tuesday’s loss. The only side to blame for allowing Lyonnes to secure a comfortable win were Arsenal themselves.
The Gunners started fast, taking the lead within seven minutes through Alessia Russo. It was Beth Mead who battled through blue shirts crowding the area and stood firm through tackles to feed Russo. It was an uncharacteristic lapse in concentration from the eight-time winners who would not make that sort of mistake again.
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Through much of 90 minutes, Arsenal lacked intent in the final third. They sent pass after pass circulating the area, unable to break down Lyonnes, the team previously known as Olympique Lyonnais. The Gunners seldom retained possession and rarely conjured an on-target attempt as a result. Had they been more clinical, perhaps their error-laden defending could have been forgiven.
Arsenal were at fault for both of the goals they conceded. Goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar first sent the ball straight to Dumornay after reclaiming possession. The Dutch shot-stopper managed to foil the first, rather poor effort, but could do nothing to stop the rebound from flying past her.
For the second goal just five minutes later, Van Domselaar did not read that Linsey Heaps was stalking behind Mariona Caldentey who put the Spaniard under pressure. She sent a hurried clearance to the inexperienced Katie Reid who, in only her second full start in the competition, headed it straight to Dumornay, and the Haitian international is far too skilled to squander those opportunities.
The Gunners continue to severely miss central defender and vice-captain Leah Williamson.
On the ball, they miss her ball carrying skills and her ability to send long balls over the top of the midfield to break the lines and give Arsenal another attacking threat. Off the ball, they miss her leadership and composure at the back.
Though Reid has done well in Williamson’s absence, there is a calmness that is amiss in the current side. Having only partnered former left back Steph Catley for six games thus far, there will naturally be a teething period as the pair learn each other’s movements and nuances — but having fallen behind in Women’s Super League already, and now trailing in the new format Champions League, where there will be no second chances compared to the former group stage, they do not have time for these lapses in cohesion and communication to persist.
Arsenal got lucky against teams like Manchester United after a 0-0 draw in the WSL as they fired blanks against The Gunners, unable to effectively find the target. The warning was there that a better team would punish them. Manchester City saw off Arsenal in a 3-2 win on Saturday and now, the loss against Lyonnes stretches the Gunners to winless in five of seven games thus far.
The celebrations from the visitors at fulltime were emphatic. The players and bench leapt into the air in elation. They knew what it means to knock points off the reigning champions early and what a statement this sends to the rest of the continent.
Lyonnes had a point to prove. Given the manner they lost last season’s semifinal — squandering a 2-1 first leg lead to lose 1-4 (3-5 on aggregate) – the French side were not going to be embarrassed again.
Conceding first kicked them into gear. Swiftly after, they enacted a suffocating press, not letting Arsenal have anytime on the ball, forcing them into pressured moves and skewed decision making. Once they had the ball, it was lightning fast. Their intense and ruthless attack is a firepower with Kadidiatou Diani, Dumornay and Marie-Antionette Katoto’s pace that the Arsenal defence, already shaky and frail could not handle.
Lyonnes quick touch movements also caused The Gunners issues in the midfield. It is clear that under former Barcelona boss Jonatan Giraldez has introduced some of the classical footwork that Barcelona adopted under his guidance. That, added to the natural quality of so many of Lyonnes’ players, the way they created the win was a statement to the rest of Europe.
Since their last win in 2022, Lyonnes haven’t had the same respect that they had for so many years. Having been eight-time winners, the most in the history of the competition, there is a natural pedigree there, but having been dethroned by Barcelona, and a new wave of fans not having watched during Lyonnes glory days, there has been an eagerness for the French side to reclaim some of the status they had previously.
With a competitive and known winner at the helm and a purpose-built squad — Lyonnes were arguably the most active of all Champions League clubs in the summer transfer window, signing players like Lily Yohannes, Jule Brand and Korbin Shrader — the eight-time winners are making a statement that this could be the season they claim a ninth title.
For Arsenal, the outlook is not so shiny. They’ve now extended their poor run to two draws and two losses in all competitions. They haven’t won a game since the second week of the WSL.
It is not too different to how they started last season, facing a win, two draws and two losses — 2-1 to Chelsea and 5-2 to Bayern Munich — in all competitions before former manager Jonas Eidevall was sacked.
He had lost the dressing room, though, and the fans had turned against the Swede, and the circumstances are not near as bleak as they were 12 months ago. Current Arsenal manager Renee Slegers still has the full support of those at the club and the fans, but the rejuvenation that Eidevall’s axing, with current manager Renee Slegers stepping in on an interim basis, forced the club to realign and they won’t get that sliding doors moment this season.
After his departure, the club were forced to rebound. They responded to go on a winning streak, operating under the fresh guidance of the Dutch coach. It was a new-look Arsenal. They were re-energised and invigorated, naturally leading to Sleger’s permanent appointment, which only furthered the harmony and contentment the side were expressing.
But now, in a similar position to last season, there will be no outward change that will force the squad to regroup. Slegers, having won the Champions League, will rightly have brought too much credit to warrant a departure. The turnaround the club will need to go through to rewrite their poor start to this season will have to come from within and fast.
Arsenal have already dropped more points than reigning WSL champions Chelsea did all last season and are now five points where The Blues sit at the top of the table. Though it’s early, only one game into a six-game league phase, it could be crucial with the club still to face Benfica, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.
