A very subjective look into AWFC

On the previous post I mentioned how Amanda was amazing and how I wanted to go deeper into Noelle playing at center back. I had planned to be fully awake and active so I could fully take in the Switzerland match a few hours ago. Spoiler alert: I FELL ASLEEP. Judging by the scoreline (0-0) I didn’t miss much, so you’d think. But a clean sheet is exactly what I wanted to see and glad that this was the result. Why? because I only really care about solid defense displays by Maritz and of course Lia Walti, but let me chat about Noelle for a second.

She has truly grown on me. The second half of the season she was on fire and showed so much consistency and determination that it was hard to imagine a team without her. Up until then I assumed she was versatile and this manifested in a few ways. One of those ways is how strong she is defensively, just as a straight up right back. Solid. You can also add to that her ability to go forward, and yeah she’s not Lucy Bronze going forward, but her overlapping runs are there when she is allowed. Add to that the fact that she can also play as a left back. That’s a huge asset.

This World Cup has shown me yet another dimension to that versatility, and as I mentioned and I’m sure you’ve seen, she has been playing as a central defender. I could swear she looks taller than she’s ever been. Ok I’m kidding. As of now she has been playing as a right center back but if she can also play left back, she can also play left center back. Do you see what I’m getting at? We have some decent cover for Leah. So: Amanda, Teyah, Beattie and even Steph can help while Leah is gone, but now adding to that potential pool to choose from is something that I wasn’t expecting if I’m being completely honest with you. I still think we can use another defender to cover for Noelle actually.

This World Cup has been fascinating and I want the season to start but due to the intensity and evenness of the matches I want all players to get as much rest as humanly possible.

d ❤

THAT ARSENAL WOMEN PODCAST on:
YOUTUBE
APPLE PODCASTS
SPOTIFY