by Nathan Edwards (19/10/23)
Above: Beth Mead applauds the crowd at The Emirates Stadium after Arsenal’s late win over Aston Villa on Sunday – a game that saw the Lionesses star make an eagerly awaited return from injury in. Photo: goal.com
For 88 minutes, the action on The Emirates turf struggled to ignite the crowd, bar from the small pocket an Aston Villa fans when Maz Pacheco’s nodded finish gave Villa the lead 25 minutes.
In fact, the only moments that saw the Arsenal crowd get to their feet were the moments Beth Mead would venture away from the bench to warm up.
It was her first team on the Gunners’ bench this season for a WSL game after she ruptured her ACL last November.
Mead’ right leg was the one that had been damaged, and with two minutes left on the clock, and two goals needed for Arsenal to get their first win of the season, Jonas Eidevall turned to his superstar for the first time in nearly a year.
It was the loudest roar of the Sunday afternoon, as nearly all of the 35,000 fans got to their feet to welcome back their hero.
When most make their first appearance after such a serious injury, it is just about getting minutes in the tank and getting used to the pace of the high-level game, which is impossible to recreate in any training scenario, unscathed.
But Mead isn’t like most, she instantly matched the speed of this frantic game, at a vital moment in Arsenal’s season. If they were to lose this, they would have continued their worst start since the WSL, but the Lioness was as determined as anyone on the pitch.
Her first involvement was to send Stina Blackstenius through on goal, just after Katie McCabe levelled, but the Swede clipped the post.
If Villa thought they were going to get a Mead slightly off-pace, they couldn’t have been further from the truth, because a minute later she had set up the winner.
Mead collected the ball just outside the box, moved the ball into the box, maybe a little heavier than she expected, and extended her right leg to lay the ball off to Alessia Russo to strike.
That was it, Arsenal had completed the turnaround and as soon as Russo’s shot squirmed under Daphne van Doomselaar, the team enclosed Mead into a group hug.
Speaking after the game, Gunners boss Jonas Eidevall said: “She deserves that reception, she has worked so hard. She has had a really difficult year, with her being injured and her mum passing away.
“We know that that has been incredibly tough for her but it is so nice seeing her back on the pitch and seeing her perform straight away. “You never know if they will, obviously I had the hope that is why I put her on, but you don’t know until you see it and that was very nice.
“So, a special moment. Mead is extremely good, she is really intuitive in those moments, but that’s what I mean when I say she is coming onto the pitch and got that straight away. Sometimes you don’t but she does it obviously because she is Beth Mead.”
It was only 14 minutes, the two minutes of normal time and 12 additional time minutes, so there is still a long time to go until Mead completes 90 minutes back-to-back, but when she is Arsenal will start to live up to their pre-season expectations.
Arsenal had struggled to penetrate through the centre in their first two home games, often forced out wide to hit aimless crosses. And for both Liverpool and Aston Villa, they found it comfortable but what Liverpool had the luxury of compared to Aston Villa was the absence of Mead.
As soon as Mead entered the field Arsenal were more direct and aggressive through the centre which was optimised by the goal. The Lionesses star can also add unpredictability to Arsenal’s attack as well as having the ability to create either through her dribbling, passing or finish.
Mead is a one-of-a-kind, but the Gunners have a plethora of attacking options, a problem that Eidevall didn’t have last year. With the 28-year-old return, Arsenal have a player who is able to link all that talent together and has already been able to build a connection with star summer addition, Russo.
Eidevall said: “Let’s hope so, we have seen them (Russo and Mead) together in the national team. It is not a hope that is based on fantasies, we have seen that work in reality so let’s hope that we have a lot of good relationships.”
Russo’s winner, in the 94th minute, was her first WSL goal for Arsenal, and throughout the match, she was marshalled quite well, with her only other opportunity a header cleared off the line.
But the former Manchester United striker was busy throughout, she was dropping deep to collect the ball and carried well to relieve pressure. It is a key part of her game, but when it comes to finishing Russo is at her best when it is instinctive, something that can be helped with Mead coming back, which we have seen during their time with England.
That relationship at the national team will have to wait, with Sarina Wiegman deciding against calling Mead up, despite being in attendance on Sunday. Mead’s exclusion will be welcomed by Arsenal’s medical staff, and Eidevall as he will hope that the striker’s return will mark the start of an upturn in luck, with Leah Williamson and Vivianne Miedema still returning from long-term injuries.
But for now, it is Mead’s return that will be celebrated by Arsenal supporters and her short cameo has already.
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