Arsenal Women Arsecast Episode 148: January mailbag

0:13Hello and welcome to the Arsenal Women Arsecastcast on Arseblog.com with me your host Tim Stillman with a January New Year mailbag edition, kind of a mini mailbag edition really, which we did kind of promise ahead of the second half of the season. Obviously loads and loads of activity. We've recalled the third goalkeeper from loan, Smilla Holmberg's come in. We thought that was definitely worth the podcast, but in all seriousness, we just thought ahead of what's going to be a really, really busy January and rest of season, we'd come back with a New Year podcast. Happy New Year to all of our listeners.

0:46hope your 2026 is going better than mine i've had norovirus um and now i'm developing quite a nasty cough so um there we go it could be worse i suppose and here to bring in 2026 and discuss some of the big issues of the day around arson women as always our co-host jamie spanger jamie um happy new year to you you obviously bring it in quite a lot earlier than we do in the uk how is it looking in the future? In the future it's looking fantastic Tim we're in the middle of a heat wave last time I was on this podcast it was 17 and rain ahead of Christmas and now it's I think it's 41 degrees tomorrow so yeah it's going to be a long summer however I would rather be here in the heat than you with your terrible start to 2026 and all your illnesses in the freezing cold however I would say England looks beautiful right now some snow up and down the country so I do have a little bit of FOMO but excited to you know get back into a new year of Arsenal yeah absolutely uh minus three here um tomorrow uh really excited to see what that means for two Meadow Park Cup ties uh later later this month if if I tell you what if they both happen I will be colour me very shocked if they both go ahead when they should um but one of the things that's happened today in the UK but actually this isn't coming out till Tuesday it is very much into Tuesday where you are.

2:13So yesterday, Arsenal announced the signing of Smilla Holmberg. She's been with the team since they reported back to training. I know we've talked about this a little bit before, but I think a good signing in a position where we've probably needed someone for the last 12 months now. Yeah, certainly. These are the signings I want to see. It's a young up-and-coming player who has levels to prove already in the Swedish national team. This is someone that can provide a backup for Emily Fox. She's a natural right back. We're not squeezing someone into that position. So, yeah, I'm excited about this signing.

2:47Liberty Simons were a really good piece. She's a Damans-Venskin expert for the Goonah fanzine. And she kind of just provided some context on the player and the way she sounds, a really modern attacking fullback, who I think she had six goals across last season, four assists. So she likes to get the ball into the box. And Liberty has watched a big Hammersby fan. So, as Anna said, her defensive ability to, like, shield the ball and kind of catch players in the wrong position. Sounds similar to Emily Fox. So, yeah, I'm excited about a young player that can fit into this squad and obviously have a ceiling for years to come.

3:19Yeah, definitely. I think you're right about the profile. You know, she's 19 and I'm not necessarily saying I think that everyone in Arsenal is going to sign over the next few windows will be 19. But, like, I think this is a kind of special 19-year-old, you know, someone who's already in the Swedish national team and kind of starting games. I think that tells you that, you know, she's pretty far ahead for her age. I gather got into the Hammondby team when she's about 16 years old. And I think what I'm kind of excited about seeing, we've already started seeing a left back where Taylor Hines and Katie McKay kind of split games, 60-30.

3:55Really, I do think we'll start to see that a little bit at right back as well. Maybe not quite to the same degree just yet. Maybe that's one for next season, hopefully, if Emily Fox signs a new contract. But, you know, much like the wide forwards, I think we'll see a lot of rotation in those kind of in those fallback areas. And in terms of the goalkeeper situation, Jamie, we, you know, Rene said before the break that with Manu Zinsberger's injury, they were looking to kind of reinforce in the goalkeeper in the goalkeeper area. we exclusively revealed on Ask Blog News that that would entail recalling Naomi Williams from her loan at Bristol City how do you feel about that move Jamie do you um you know there's there's pragmatism at its core but were you disappointed that Arsenal didn't go out and get you know there's there's goalkeepers on the market at the moment right I think Jennifer Falca it sounds like she's signed with Hecken, but is going on loan to Liverpool.

4:58Caelan Sheridan is leaving San Diego Wave, although young family, I'm not sure if she'd move. You know, it does feel like Melanie Gross at Bayern Munich. There have been kind of some suggestions that more senior goalkeepers are on the move. How do you feel about recalling Naomi at this stage? Yeah, look, I don't think it's a ceiling raiser, obviously, because Naomi Williams has been in our squad for a couple of years now. She's very young. I think a part of this recall as well comes from the fact that she was getting no minutes at Bristol City. It feels like a big waste of her time being in that environment.

5:32So that to me makes sense. I think regardless of the goalkeeper situation, if there's space in the squad for her to be a train-on player, it just makes more sense at this moment than her training with Bristol. In terms of, look, if we have a situation where there's a really bad injury crisis with our goalkeepers, obviously Daphne van Nobslaar has been carrying an injury her entire career at Arsenal and didn't have great luck at Aston Villa either, then it does concern me because it feels like, like you said, Tim, there's players on the market that you can bring in on a short-term loan, bring them into the end of the season, you know that you can put them on goal and they have the experience to play at a high level and just be inserted into these games.

6:06So in terms of it's low risk, low reward, I think, in my opinion, it's good for the player because she needs to be in a better training environment. But in terms of, yeah, kind of solidifying everything at the back, I'm not high in confidence based on that move. Yeah, yeah, I definitely understand that. You know, she had a fight on her hands with Fran Bentley at Bristol City, who's a very good experienced goalkeeper. I think I can give a little bit more context to this. I mean, first of all, kind of understand that there could be a new contract in the works for Naomi as well, because her current deal runs out at the end of this season, which suggests a certain amount of faith in the long and medium term.

6:44I think the other important context to note here is I think a lot of eagle-eyed fans noticed Annika Bawba wasn't in the training pictures a couple of days before the Crystal Palace game don't believe she's been in the training pictures so far this new year from what I understand she's been carrying an issue herself for quite a long time and I believe this was the case when she was playing in the team basically and and they kind of had to patch her up so um and I think that's been the case for a little while so I think that perhaps brings a little bit of new context in terms of I've said myself we've said I know lots of people have said like well why have we signed Anika Borba if Rene prefers injured Daphne van Domsala in goal and I think the the actual reality of that is that that Rene has preferred injured Daphne van Domsala to injured Anika Borba so we really have had a scenario where basically all three of the senior goalkeepers just haven't been fit.

7:43So I think that's kind of brought an urgency to proceedings. I don't know what the case is with Anika at the moment and whether she's back from Man United. I've got absolutely no idea, but I know she'd been managing an issue. So I think, you know, in terms of getting Naomi back, that's something you can do quickly as well. And you don't have to negotiate a deal or anything. You just kind of click your fingers, the loan's done, and she's back in the team and in the squad. So, you know, I think that's maybe put some kind of perspective on it. I do think there'll probably be a bit more movement on the goalkeeper side anyway.

8:19I've said before, I think the club were open to letting Manu Zinsberger go last summer. I can't imagine that will have changed, but obviously I don't know with her injury what will happen there. So, you know, I think basically when you've got a really solid first choice goalkeeper, What happens underneath that does tend to be a little bit tumultuous. And at the moment, at this moment in time, it's looking like it will be a relatively quiet January for Arsenal, although I wouldn't absolutely rule out anything else happening. You know, I think what the market throws up, as we saw last year with Chloe Kelly and all of that, like, so I don't think anyone's throwing up any we're done, see you later signs.

9:04but at the moment in terms of incomings looking like quite a quiet January but necessity says it's going to be a very very busy summer and perhaps you know perhaps a lot of players with contracts up a lot of players I think the club would have been okay with good offers for earlier those situations are going to be forced now so how do you feel Jamie in terms of like the squad build and are you okay with a quiet January if that's what happens ahead of a really busy summer or would you like to see more done in January? Tim I think the first half of the season is obviously always so much quieter you've got no no domestic cups and it felt at that stage that our squad was kind of thin there was some injuries obviously Lee Williamson Kim Little's absences that just made the squad feel thin.

10:00It just made it feel like there wasn't the adequate replacements to come in and win those games that we needed to win. You're dropping points against teams like Aston Villa. And it felt like at that stage of the season, there needed to be reinforcements. So looking ahead into the second half of the season, it makes me like the squad, the state of the squad makes me really nervous. We have to account for the fact that there's five competitions. There's also an international competition in which Caitlin Ford goes away, Steph Catley goes away, Kyra Kunicross goes away. So right now, I think Arsenal are in a situation where there's a lot of gaps in this squad.

10:29And it does worry me a bit. I think Kyra Cooneycross has made her way into that midfield. You take her out. How then do you fix that problem for maybe all of March in a busy period? Caitlin Ford goes and Chloe Kelly is obviously not 100 % fit. You're then in a situation where your wing is a halved and you've got Beth Mead and Olivia Smith having to do double the loading in a very busy period. Steph Catley coming out worries me a little bit less. However, I'm still not certain on the Leah-Williams and Lottowob and Moe partnership. And again, it's a really busy period to really lock down that experiment because I think they're similar of player profile.

11:01But that is probably the area of the pitch I'm least concerned about. It's that midfield and those width. I just think heading into this back end of the season, Tim, I would expect like it would have to be a busy January. And if it's not going to be, I'm worried because we've seen what one or two injuries key players can do to this squad and points dropped already. So, yeah, I'm not excited about a quiet January, to be honest. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I hope they're open to a bit of opportunity coming up. Like I said, a bit like Chloe Kelly last January. I think the squad isn't looking bigger in terms of numbers because Holmberg's coming in, Jenna Nyswonger, I'm expecting to hear something about that pretty soon, about where she's going.

11:44So it's kind of one in, one out. But at the same time, if it's one in that you're going to use and one out that you're not going to use, then your squad does get a little bit bigger but I do think I'd like one more I do think I'd like one more um I you know I I think where I'd like one more the most maybe midfield but I think some of those midfield targets probably aren't available until the summer and uh we'll probably see some some surgery there in the summer again some contracts will will kind of drive that a little bit maybe another wide player as well because that feels like um you know something and like you said the Asia Cup um but you know there have been links as well Jamie to uh Georgia Stanway now I've been slightly coy on the podcast over the last few months I'd kind of said that I was aware that there was interest in another midfielder last summer other than Geraldine Reuteler that that's who I was talking about um and I kind of kind of hinted at it in the newsletter last week and Emma Sanders from the BBC on her New Year's Day blog um which was a kind of transfer WSL transfer roundup said it as well that was gives me confidence um if Emma's heard what I've heard then that's that's that's good enough for me um so you know I and and I will say as well at this stage I have no idea what's going to happen there if anything I know that there has been interest though and that's something that Arsenal have monitored what what would you think in a in a world where this could happen and might happen and I'm not saying it will we've been here before with an England midfielder that we've monitored and it hasn't happened but what your what would your feelings be about Georgia Stanway and Arsenal?

13:36Yeah I think this is like one that has a lot of points. First of all, I think Georgia Stanway is a fantastic player. And I think if I look at the Lionesses, like she's probably other than maybe the two Laurens in Hemp and James, she's probably one of the players that would be at the top of my list. I think she's like, she was such a massive part of this England squad for the last five, six years, and she's only 27, just turned as well. So I think this is a player that I've always really, really valued. And I think her move to Germany in the Bundesliga, I think really solidified that as well. She was really one of the first like big marquee English players to go over to the Bundesliga and really like take in the environment embrace the culture and just and love the league and I think that says a lot about a player's ambition so Georgia Stanley is one that I've really really always enjoyed as a player but I think in saying that she's probably not the midfielder that Arsenal need in profile so I expect that if she comes in there's gonna have to be like a little bit of a upheaval in terms of okay who are those eights because she's not a six Georgia Stanley she likes to be fluid a little bit more.

14:33She does press forward. When she plays with someone like Ella Toon in the Lionesses, they kind of like to switch around in that 8 and 10 a little bit more. So I do think she's a very exciting player. However, I don't think that she can come in and we can keep all of Victoria Pulova. What happens to Kyra Cooney Cross's position? Does she just become more of a 6? So yeah, I think with the Georgia Stanway one, she's kind of a player where I'm willing to just change the squad. She's the same age as Victoria Pulova, and I think her ceiling and her level right now is much higher. So if it has to be a one-in-one out with one of the midfielders, I think I'd be really happy with that because she is, yeah, she's a phenomenal player.

15:08But in the very, very, if it was to happen now, I think, why are we clogging? We're clogging a squad list there with players that are more than capable. So a bit of mixed feelings. However, I think that my priority is just bring her in, work a way to find her in the squad because if she wants to play for Arsenal, she's a player that you almost have to make it happen. Yeah, I think there's a couple of things here. And again, I'll reiterate not to get anyone's hopes up because I've genuinely got no idea at this stage whether anything would happen in the summer here. But I think there's kind of two things.

15:37I could definitely see the attraction for Rene because Rene doesn't want to play with like, you know, from what we can see, doesn't really want to play with like a standalone six. She wants that fluidity. And I think Stanway could fit into that because she kind of can go both ways. Really, she can do that defensive job and she can go forward. I think the other thing probably relates to Kim Little. Again, we've got no idea at the moment whether she'll extend or not beyond this year. But even if she does, I know we say this every summer, but even if she extends, we would have to try and wean ourselves off her a little bit at some stage.

16:16And basically, a future Arsenal midfield without Kim Little is very difficult to think about and a little bit traumatising to think about. but we're not going to get another Kim Little because there isn't one. I've seen this before with the men's team and players like Patrick Vieira. They just, the kind of, the next one isn't there. They don't exist. And even if there is one, you're not buying them. So basically the midfield would have to change really because, yeah, we're not signing another Kim Little. so obviously like george's very very different profile but i think also at least in the medium term that transition or that weaning whichever one it happens to be away from kim little it can't be a young player it can't you cannot go from 35 year old kim little and then put a 21 year old in i don't think you can do that and i think someone like stanway 27 but very experienced 27 year old as well like I like the age and the kind of the stature you know but then it would just depend on how the midfield worked around that but let's see I'll see if I hear anything else about that in the interim you know what about before we go to a break then you know at the moment Arsenal are in a bit of a a bit of a bun fight for Champions League qualification with Manchester United.

17:49And as much as we hate to say it, we have to say Tottenham until such time that they're not close to us in the table. They're both doing a lot of business. I mean, Manchester United, obviously, a very small squad. They had to go out and do stuff, I think. Tottenham doing some good business, you know, shopping in the... It almost feels like Tottenham's recruitment strategy has been Liberty Simon's timeline a little bit. But, you know, like all good players and, you know, obviously a very kind of fertile league to recruit from, as we've done as well in January and plenty of other windowsters. What Man United and Spurs have done and are doing, does that give you any kind of, does that give you any cause for concern?

18:37Yeah, I think so. Look, I think like United have gone out in this window and done what they need to do. I still think that they need to do more based on their squad. Like their squad was so, so short heading into this season. And like still compared to Arsenal, I think that their squad depth and it's just so thin. I still think like that we have a superior squad just in terms of numbers and a little bit of quality. Obviously, Salim Zett is obviously pregnant as well. So they needed to replace her as well as their thin squad. So with United, I don't think it's like, oh, they're more ambitious than Arsenal right now.

19:09I think United just have to fill their gaps. And because they're signing players like Leia Shuler, It looks like, yeah, they're striving for Champions League football. They want to go far in this Champions League campaign. So I think, yeah, good on them because it's about time. However, they needed to do it. It was a necessity thing for Man United this winter window. They needed to get it done. And Mark Skinner was very, very open and honest about that, even before the season started, saying we have plenty of work to do in January because we didn't do enough over the summer. So I think United is like, it's hard because, yes, they're really good players.

19:39And it's good that they're not just filling their squad with numbers. They're actually striving to lift their ceiling. But I still think they have work to do because, like, their holes are just so gaping if they get an injury. It just feels like they've got so many competitions left. Obviously, they're still in the Champions League. So, yes, good job for United. However, I don't think it's, like, a massive, like, concern in terms of their raising the ceiling more than Arsenal. In terms of Spurs, like, I have to say I am very impressed because, like, last season they came into the January transfer window.

20:09They still had a strong window, but it was more, okay, let's invest in young players. It felt like their strategy was let's get a young player who's returning off a six-month injury because no one else wants to take that punt right now. Let's kind of nurse them back to health for the next three months. Someone like Olivia Holt, and that's paid off. That transaction's paid off, but there were other players that that's not paid off for. There's a lot of players in that Spurs squad that Robert Billaham signed has felt like the gamble didn't work. They've got a couple players there. This under Martin Ho, it felt like this in the summer.

20:38This January transfer window is, okay, these are young players that are ready to play. They're coming off a really big season, especially if they're playing Scandinavian leagues. And they are going to add a lot to this squad. Like, Signa Gopset, who else? Julie Blackstad. And then going and signing Micah Romano. Like, she's a very capable player. And she's a player that Chelsea fans have been, like, calling out to be getting more minutes over the midfielders that are starting. So for Spurs right now, I think this is a team that want future. They want to sustain their future success and they want it to be sustainable.

21:07But I think they're also bringing in players that are going to make an immediate impact. and if they've been able to kind of withstand those tougher fixtures with the exception of that Man City loss earlier in the season, now they've brought in more reinforcements, you kind of have to take your hat off to them because it is about time. And it would also like, it's just, it is good for the game when a team like Tottenham are good in the women's game as much as it kills me to say. So a little bit concerned about Spurs. I still don't think their, I think their fixture run has been quite kind to them.

21:34I still think they're going to see a little bit of a drop off in the second half of the season, but it is a bit shaky and a bit worrying because I think for the future they're definitely building something. And we all know that Martin Ho is a very capable manager as well. So both different situations. I think Arsenal right now still have the squad, but a lot of luck needs to prevail with injuries that we had last season to win the Champions League. So still concerned. However, yeah, I think they're two separate situations. Yeah, definitely. I think the only thing I'd say on United, I think we all knew they were going to do this kind of level of business.

22:04the only thing I'd say is I guess I dismissed them slightly more just because of the size of their squad I don't look at their squad and see bad players I just didn't see enough I was really hoping we'd have a bigger lead over them actually I was kind of hoping I was thinking yeah January that maybe United will be out of the Champions League or whatever and they're not and maybe it would be a few points clear by the time they can sort themselves out and we're not really so obviously we play them on Saturday and that's that's a huge huge game to to kick off the year with why don't we take a break there and we will come back in part two with a few of your questions submitted on Blue Sky.

22:51Okay welcome back to part two of the Arsenal Women Asked Cast January Mailbag Edition and Jamie the first question I'm going to go with quite a simple one perfect for this kind of podcast where we're you know just filling in the gaps of uh of uh things that have happened over the last few weeks and whatnot and a bit of kind of review preview stuff from at clive dash b who was your player of the first half of the season good question um okay that's a good question i actually didn't prepare for this one i think that there's a couple and i think for different reasons i don't think there's been one player in this squad at the start of the season that has set themselves above everyone else.

23:31I think there has been like a collective slow start, but there have been some players that have consistently played well. I think Olivia Smith has done a really good job to integrate herself in the squad. She's like just brought something to this Arsenal squad that we do not have at all and haven't had for a very long time and just that kind of that baller that just wants to do it herself. So I think Olivia Smith has done a great job. This might be controversial, but a player that I think, and I think this weighs into a lot of factors go into this scenario, but I think the expectation on this player, people kind of waiting for her to fail.

24:02And I think that time and time again, she kind of proves that she's really, really valuable. And I'm going to say Beth Mead. I just think she is a player that right now is she's like racking up assists. She's in the goal involvements. I think there's so many games this season where I think it was the Leicester game, the Everton game, where she does so much more work than people give her account for. And I think the fact that she's coming into the midfield, she knows when to drop back for Emily Fox. I think this is a player that is still doing more than she gets credit for. And I think when you look at the other wingers right now, obviously Chloe Kelly's been injured.

24:35I think Beth Mead's been better than Caitlin Ford, and I think that's by a far margin. So, yeah, I'm not saying she's been the player of the season, but I think she's been way more integral to this side this season than people give her credit for. Yeah, I'd go, if this was like an unsung hero question, I'd go Steph Catley. She plays every game, and I think she's really good in every game. I still think people have trouble, a little bit of trouble accepting her as a left back. But also, I think because she's about to turn 32, there's, and I understand it, there's the, yeah, but who's the next, like, left centre back?

25:10And that is going to be a big signing. So I understand that. But I think at this moment in time, she plays all the time. She plays really, really well. There are two players for me I'd mention here. Kim Little, who I think has just been tremendous, as she pretty much always is. But for me, it's Alessia Russo. I think Russo's just gone to a bit of a different level this season. I think she's very much becoming the heart of the team in an attacking sense. Really, really rounding out her game very, very nicely. Just an excellent footballer who, ultra consistent, has been to this point, fingers crossed, ultra available.

25:47So Russo would probably be my pick over Kim just because Kim missed a couple of weeks with injury. Do you have a question for me? I do. This one is from at Ariella W. Traditionally, we've struggled out of the block after the winter window. With a more packed schedule than ever, what do you think the club managers and players can do to avoid stumbling in some very important matches? Yeah, I think one of the reasons Arsenal don't go away anymore is because a couple of years ago they went to Portugal for like when they got back together for their training camp. And I think there was some kind of review that they thought it didn't work very well, which is one of the reasons I believe that they stay in London now.

26:33I can't remember what happened immediately after in January last year. I remember we played Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, which we're doing again this January. We will beat Palace 5-0 at Menno Park. Yeah, and then there was a Subway Cup game against Brighton, which we won. Obviously, the challenge is much bigger this January with the FIFA Champions Cup. We got Chelsea, we got Man United twice. I mean, I kind of think obviously the preparation comes into that, but I just think these games are going to be tight, they're going to be close, and it's just going to be outcome-driven as to how we view how everything's been prepared.

27:14I think, you know, getting the first signing through the door so she's there straight away. And, you know, even like we talked about getting Naomi Williams in so that, you know, we've got a substitute goalkeeper on Saturday who isn't, you know, 17 years old, 16 years old, like who isn't like about to do their A-levels type thing. So, you know, we've done some stuff to kind of ensure the squad straight away, which I think is good. But really, it's just very difficult to comment on what happens like behind the scenes and training and preparation and stuff like that. I'm glad we're at home first.

27:54I do think that makes a difference actually as well when you're coming off the back of a winter break. Should be a nice big crowd at the Emirates on Saturday. Fact it's at the Emirates means probably won't get called off. Whereas if you've been at Meadow Park, I don't think it would go ahead. So that always kind of puts you on a bit of a back foot as well because that's something that happened last year. We had games called off, didn't we? I think it was a cup tie against Bristol City we were supposed to start with. That got called off. We had the manager thing last January where that wasn't finalised till halfway through the month.

28:28So I think just admin is better admin, good admin, is what I'd say there. Let's kind of stay on. I don't know if this is a similar theme, but we mentioned Rene and that being finalized last January. This is from at Laguna Beach, Katina McStenius. Do you think Rene wanting to be a head coach rather than a manager stems more from personal preference or a lack of confidence? If memory serves, she initially didn't want the head coach role, then changed her mind once she got a taste for it. So what do you reckon? Do you reckon that's, yeah, lack of confidence or just the way she prefers it to be a delegator.

29:13I'm glad she's not gone into a press conference post-match and said, I want to be a manager and not a head coach. We'll know what's happened this week. Yeah, exactly. We know what will happen the next day. Don't go saying that after Man United, Renee. Yeah, no, I think this is a couple of things. I think that this has been really obvious in her, just her footballing style this year. I think when we saw her come into the squad, the first thing that the players praised where she's a very good one-on-one manager. We obviously knew that that was her role when she was an assistant coach. And it does feel like she just likes to work with the players on a really low basis and she doesn't want to be in charge of the bigger picture stuff.

29:49We've said a million times on this podcast though, Tim, I think there's a necessity at a club like Arsenal when you're playing across so many competitions, there's a lot of expectation where you need to survive the league, you need to be winning the league and there's a lot of expectation to bring home silverware. You need to do both. It's just in the nature of the job or you need to have a really, really strong backroom team And I think we've seen over the last couple of years, Arsenal probably don't have a very strong backroom team. So it does come with a little bit more extra responsibility.

30:14When you're the head coach, you have to be a manager. I think she's maybe, I can't see, I can't see a situation though when she's maybe adapted into both. I don't know if we've seen her become that bigger picture manager yet. And I don't think we'll know until the summer if that's going to be the kind of persona that she takes on, because I do think she needs to do that in an element. I just think right now, she's a really talented tactician and that's something I've not doubted of Renee I just think there's a there's a philosophy that she needs to build and that comes with time like she's she's a year older than Kim Little she's a very young manager and I still think Arsenal would be silly to not invest time into this into this manager in the future because someone else will snap her up so she's come from the Damans-Vernskim where she's won the league she's got a lot of experience in the coaching industry but she needs to be able to grow her game and I think to answer like answer to the question in a roundabout way, I think it will come with confidence and time, but it also needs to come with a support system where, okay, what is your role and what is everyone else's role and how can they complement each other?

31:12Because right now it feels like she's kind of saying, I don't really want to do all this like higher up recruitment stuff. I don't really want to be a part of the strategy, but no one else is saying, okay, let's work with the way you want to coach and we can build that around you. It feels like she's kind of doing on her own and no one else is really picking up that slack. So I just think Arsenal need to maybe support her a little bit more but it comes with confidence and it comes with time I think we're seeing that with a lot of managers and not everyone can can like build a squad with a philosophy like Mikel Arteta even though they're still kind of waiting for it for the big one I still think yeah there's this time with this manager to progress and I just want to hold our hope.

31:46Yeah my own take is I think collective leadership is just her style I think she likes to empower people she likes to delegate I don't think it's a lack of confidence I think it's personal preference. Do you have a question for me yes this question is from at livy afc uh are you worried about the prospect of not securing top three this season it doesn't sound like we're doing a lot in the january window whilst other teams trying for the top three are playing very well and getting more business done than us just hope we don't regret having a quiet window so the threat of of the champions league spots tim i mean yeah of course i won't worry about it yet i don't think i think that's that'll come there's plenty of time to i i think it might be an einstein quote where he said i never think of the future because it comes soon enough um and and that's kind of how i feel about it it is going to be but i tell you what chelsea are in there as well that chelsea are in the same bun fight as us um i do think man city are pretty clear at the top and i i'm kind of expecting them to take it this year which I've never even two seasons ago when they were at the top I did I still doubted them right to the last I don't this time um and I think Chelsea are I think Chelsea kind of got a transition going on um Chelsea this year remind me a lot of Liverpool men in that like they did the big manager change and they won the league but then like now the transition's actually happening and like you know how do we replace sam kerr in the long term and millie bright's not really playing anymore and like don't get me wrong they'll be fine um but i i think they're going through their transition season and and it kind of doesn't sound like they'll do an awful lot in january either and they've got some question marks over some of their players so we kind of talked about manu and and tottenham i i think a lot will come down to the games themselves um which are being played this month.

33:46The thing I think with Arsenal, and I know this might sound silly because we did, well, I suppose Aston Villa at home was really the only one. I just back Arsenal to beat the teams that are not in that, that kind of, generally speaking, you know. I know it hasn't always happened that way. It won't always happen that way. And I think the league's getting stronger, but generally speaking, I think Arsenal, I just kind of back Arsenal against those teams, whereas I still think someone like Man United might do something silly like lose away at West Ham. Whereas I don't think low blocks are an issue under Rene like they were under Jonas.

34:30And I think we'll take care of those games. But, you know, the games against Man United, Chelsea, Man City as well, that's coming up. They'll all be on a bit of a knife edge. How far do we go in other competitions as well, like beat United and there's a League Cup final there. So it's all kind of up in the air and it's all very exciting. But I'm not worrying about that yet. You know, there'll be plenty of time for that. And I'm at an age where I've got plenty of worry lines. I've got plenty of grey hairs. I don't need to accelerate that process any further. how about this one then a bit more of a kind of tactical squad question and it's from Michael at Michael etc or Michael and he uses the one as an L etc but I don't know how to say that if Arsenal sometimes want to play with Russo as a 10 behind Steiner do you think we need a third striker to be able to change things off the bench oh I just okay first of all first of all I really can't answer this question like with um with intelligence and impartially because I just think that Russo should be the nine that you build the squad over around yeah I just think it's kind of hard to answer this question because in my head Alessia Russo is the nine Stena Black Dennis is that great super sub right now and then you have Michelle Adjumang obviously recovering from an ACL.

36:00So I don't think there's room to bring in a striker right now because then you have to look at Michelle and say, okay, what's your place in the squad? Is she going to be happy to return to the squad after ACL and still be like that third in line striker? So right now, I don't think, I think the striker position is probably the last position on the pitch. No, it definitely is the last position on the pitch that I would do business in right now. I think this is the best one and two strikers to have that kind of combination in Black, Stenius and Russo right now. And it just comes down to the fact that I think that Russo is in the 10 because Renee doesn't have a 10 right now that she's completely faithful in.

36:31And I think that if this is the scenario, it needs to be a case of, okay, go to the transfer window, find an attacking midfielder that fits this system rather than put Alessio Rousseau there, get a replacement striker. She's too good of a number nine to waste her in the 10 and to kind of bring in someone that's not going to be as good in the number nine. So many answers as to why it's a big no, but I just think, yeah, no. Put Rousseau in the nine. If you need another 10, look in the market and find someone that fits the playing stuff. Yeah, I just think play Mariana in the 10. Yeah. Play Mariana as the 10.

37:01Yeah, then Russo and Blaxton are C9s. I think that's probably where Mariana wants to play anyway. You know, she's getting into her 30s. I think we kind of want to look after her a bit and probably not go, hey, do you want to be 6, 8 and 10 all at the same time? You know, I think make her the number 10. And Frida, very good. Another option there that we can play there. like I'm with you. I don't really want to see Russo in the 10 very much. Do you have a question for me? I do. Let's do one more each. Brilliant. This one is, maybe you could take this as a more positive one. I'm not sure. It depends.

37:42This one is from at Sarah JK official. What are you each or each looking forward to most in the second half of the season? Kim Little lifting the FA Cup at Wembley. I need that for my mental health actually obviously Kim has won the FA Cup several times as an Arsenal player scored in finals and all that but not at Wembley Stadium and that's a bit of a crime so I really want to see that I really want to see Kim Little in the Royal Box lifting the FA Cup I'm really looking forward now it's now it's kind of all scheduled and we know where it's all taking place and stuff like that. I'm really looking forward to the Champions Cup, actually.

38:32I think it's something I think and hope women's football will do in the future, a bit more of this intercontinental style kind of stuff, particularly because you've got some really strong European teams and leagues and really strong u.s league um you know there's there's loads of talent in africa as well and the work permit regulations certainly in the uk are such that maybe we don't get to see as much of it over here and look we have no divine right to do so but like i i just kind of like this more global setup i'm i'm glad it's in london um and it's it's going to be really interesting as well just even just like administratively as a journalist like you know very exciting like registering on the fifa media portal over Christmas and messing it up and getting rejected and then going in again getting it right because I uploaded the wrong documents like an idiot but you know just even like admin wise how it all runs is going to be a real curiosity to me and I'm really looking forward to seeing teams like Corinthians and Gotham as well as Arsenal so I'm really looking forward to that actually.

39:44What about you? I'm looking forward to my direct flight from Melbourne to Oslo come May to win back-to-back Champions League finals because it's going to happen. And we can all come back to this episode January 6th you'll be listening to this. Just remember when I said we'll win back-to-back. No, but in all seriousness, I do think it's probably something that this team would do and that's the only way we'll finish in the Champions League because we'll come fifth or something in the WSL. I'm with you though. Champions Cup team, I'm so excited to watch that. I think I really love watching Gotham.

40:17I love watching the NWSL. I just think I'm with you to be able to watch the best teams in the world, and right now it probably is the NWSL, the NWSL, argue what you will about the League F, but I still think it's the Barcelona League. So I just think these are two teams, if it will be in the final, that is just really excited to see where the level is because we've seen NWSL and WSL teams play in practice matches, but we've not seen a competitive fixture. It's just let's see what the Champions League winners and also the NWSL Championship winners can do against each other and see where the league level is.

40:50I think it's so exciting for women's football to kind of get that global picture outside of Europe because obviously the Champions League is so big, but we don't have that on a club basis. So, yeah, I'm really excited about that just to see two great teams. Well, many great teams, but hopefully Gotham just for my NWSL buyers battle it out in N5. yeah yeah i know got you know gotham are taking it seriously there's a really good uh gotham reporter jenna tonnelly and she's kind of saying that you know they've already gone to spain they've started a training camp and they're going to play some some kind of behind closed doors games like they're they're taking this very seriously which is which is great i mean i kind of knew they would um and and yeah and and it would probably be nice if we could come at some point in the future to a delta point where like both where those teams face each other like I don't know more maybe like September October you know like because obviously Gotham are going to be in pre-season and that's that's kind of unavoidable at the moment but I really think more opportunities more opportunities basically for NWSL teams I think in particular to play against some of Europe's best Corinthians as well what they've been doing in Brazil they've dominated the Libertadores I think they've won the last six the last five um you know win win the Brazilian Al pretty much every year although they got I think before Christmas they got a bit of a spanking off Palmeiras um who are kind of doing good things so you know there's a real burgeoning well I'm not sure it is burgeoning kind of women's football scene in Brazil but obviously that's where the next World Cup is and I have some interest in it um as well anyway from covering Brazilian football.

42:32So I'm just as excited to see Corinthians there. I'm really looking forward, hopefully, to being able to watch and cover Corinthians v Gotham as well at Brentford. And then obviously all the teams will be there at the Emirates on Sunday. So yeah, I'm hugely looking forward to that. I think it'll be a bit of a kind of, you know, a festival of football if that doesn't sound too kind of too glib. But Jamie, that's 42 minutes. Shall we wrap it there? let's wrap it there thank you tim enjoyed that and excited for the season to kick back off yeah same here and um managed to get through that without a coughing fit which is absolutely amazing so i am going to dive into a mug of lem sip um stick my head well not my actually submerge my head but do the old uh the old wives thing of sticking your head in a hot bowl a hot bowl of water and breathing in all the steam and all of that i got laryngitis a couple of years ago did that absolutely swear by it so um yeah we'll be back um probably on monday with a post manchester united podcast until then happy new year again thanks for joining us