Arsenal end four-year trophy drought with Conti Cup final win over Chelsea
Arsenal put an end to their four-year period without winning any trophies by securing a victory of 3-1 against Chelsea in the final of the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup 2022/2023 at Selhurst Park
. The Gunners’ goals were scored by Stina Blackstenius and Kim Little, while the other goal was accidentally scored by Niamh Charles, who put the ball into her own team’s net.
The match attracted a crowd of 19,010, which is the largest number ever recorded for a game in the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup.
Chelsea took the initiative at the beginning of the game and scored within two minutes, thanks to Guro Reiten’s precise cross, which was headed in by Sam Kerr from a distance of six yards.
Reiten and Kerr teamed up again after six minutes, but Kerr’s header lacked the necessary force to trouble Arsenal goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger.
In the 16th minute, Arsenal equalized when Frida Maanum’s shot deflected off someone and fell to Blackstenius, who scored from close range, beating Ann-Katrin Berger.
Arsenal gained momentum from their equalizer and eight minutes later, they were awarded a penalty after Sophie Ingle fouled Katie McCabe in the box. Captain Little successfully converted the spot kick, sending Ann-Katrin Berger in the wrong direction, and Arsenal took the lead 2-1.
Blackstenius had a goal disallowed for offside as Arsenal continued to look for more goals. Meanwhile, Sam Kerr missed a great opportunity to score for Chelsea with a header that went wide.
In the last minute of the first half, Arsenal got another goal. A corner kick from the right was headed into Chelsea’s net by Charles, who was unfortunate enough to score an own goal. This left Chelsea with a difficult task to come back in the second half.
At the start of the second half, both Caitlin Foord and Erin Cuthbert had attempts for their respective teams, but neither goalkeeper was really challenged.
Arsenal should have been awarded a penalty when Foord was fouled in the box by Kadeisha Buchanan, but the lineswoman failed to notice the foul. Melanie Leupolz then had a shot from 25 yards out, but Arsenal goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger was able to save it.
Chelsea kept trying to get back into the game, and Leupolz came close to scoring with a shot that hit the crossbar late in the game. However, that was the closest Chelsea came to scoring, and Arsenal deservedly won the game 3-1.
This win in the FA Women’s Continental Tyres League Cup is Arsenal’s first trophy since they won the Barclays Women’s Super League title in 2018/2019.
Arsenal end four-year trophy drought with Conti Cup final win over Chelsea
