MY ACCOUNT
Arsenal Women will hope Stina Blackstenius can help fire them into the final four of this season’s Women’s Champions League.
The Gunners lost the first-leg of their quarter-final tie with Bayern Munich 1-0 but remain in with a strong chance of progression ahead of their home leg at the Emirates.
Though their highly-rated Swedish striker has had her struggles since moving to London, she has also came up with some vital goals in recent weeks.
Ahead of a crucial Europan clash on Wednesday night, we take a look at Blackstenius’ career journey to date and her current burst of form.
Hitting form
Blackstenius has made a habit of netting important strikes recently.
Back in February, she rose off the bench to net an extra-time winner against Manchester City in the semi-final of the Women’s League Cup.
The centre forward then returned to the starting lineup for the final against Chelsea and bagged Arsenal’s first goal of the match in a 3-1 victory over their London rivals.
It was the club’s first piece of silverware since 2019, in a season in which they are also still targeting Champions League and Super League success.
The Gunners sit fourth in the English top flight, just three points behind current leaders Manchester United on whom they hold a game in hand.
Last weekend, they won the North London derby by a 5-1 scoreline, with Blackstenius scoring the opening goal of the drubbing after just five minutes.
Greatest asset
Blackstenius got Arsenal off to a flying start against Spurs and manager Jonas Eidevall was quick to praise her afterwards.
The coach said: “Every game poses different challenges, but Stina gave exactly what we needed at the start of the game by posing a threat from balls in behind against a very compact Spurs’ team.
“I think it was very nice to see her take the first finish on her first touch, when she first spots the goalkeeper a little bit out of position.”
Blackstenius’ opener was a perfect example of her greatest asset. She has great movement, which allows her to regularly get behind and split defences.
The 5ft 9in striker is also adept at evading markers to provide an aerial threat, while she boasts a range of passing that allows her to create chances for others too.
Transfer talk
Blackstenius joined Arsenal on a free transfer from the Swedish club BK Hacken in January 2022.
It was her second move abroad, having started a spell at Montpellier in France brightly before losing her starting spot during her third season and returning to her homeland.
The international was also being tracked by Tottenham and Manchester United, but Blackstenius decided to link up with her compatriot Eidevall at Arsenal.
Last term, she scored seven goals in 16 games. In what is her first full season, she has so far added another 13 in 28 appearances — though her overall form has been solid rather than spectacular.
The January transfer window saw Blackstenius linked to a swap deal involving Manchester United and England forward Alessia Russo, though the move never materialised.
Critical run
Having remained at Arsenal, there is now a lot of pressure on Blackstenius to deliver, at a time when fellow forwards Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema are out injured.
Talk of the club being willing to dispense of her services after just a year puts into perspective the high standards that she is expected to meet in North London.
Since January, the striker has scored four goals in nine games. Arsenal will be encouraged that some of those have arrived when the pressure is on.
The win against Spurs came just days after their first-leg loss to Bayern Munich. Tonight, they must face the Germans again before crunch games against title rivals Manchester City and Manchester United.
It is a critical run of matches that will decide if Arsenal will win further trophies this season — and could also dictate Blackstenius’ future in England.
