Arsenal legend Ian Wright has once again hit out at Renee Slegers’ team selection – saying that Kyra Cooney-Cross and Victoria Pelova do not get enough minutes.
The Gunners drew 1-1 against Aston Villa at the Emirates on Saturday, conceding a late equaliser to Lucy Parker in stoppage time.
And Wright, as a pundit on the live television coverage, criticised the way that Slegers managed her side.
Saying that the big wins against London City Lionesses and West Ham United had given Arsenal “a false sense of security” after the first two matches of the season, Wright suggested that some squad rotation and seeking a second goal earlier in the match might have been a better idea.
“[Mariona] Caldentey, who’s played a lot of football up to this point: maybe 25 minutes earlier in the game bring on a Kyra Cooney-Cross into the game, who wants to come on – she needs games – to get the ball forward, to get the ball forward with some energy, get some people running on to the ball.
“In the end, you just look back at it and you think to yourself it’s a poor result, but a good result for Villa, because Arsenal didn’t do nowhere near enough to finish them off in the first half when there were so many spaces and opportunities to do that – and that’s what happens, you end up drawing a game you should have won.”
Ian Wright: There is not enough competition in the Arsenal squad
Wright – who criticised the absence of USA defender Jenna Nighswonger earlier in the week – added that the lack of variation in the team had a knock-on impact psychologically for both starting players and substitutes.
“She’s got to trust in that squad. There’s players in that team, on that bench, Kyra Cooney-Cross, Pelova, coming on, getting some minutes – they don’t get enough minutes, she uses the same substitutes all the time, there’s no difference in the game, there’s no change…someone [who is] going to come on and make it more quick and sharp for us, because she uses the same players.
“So she’s got players who are probably upset there now, because they’ve drawn a game and they’ve got nowhere near the team and we’re drawing games like that we should be winning.”
Mentioning Nighswonger again, he went on: “These players are not getting to come on and make a difference in the game.
“Make some changes – what’s going to change the fabric of the game?
“There’s not enough competition in the squad. People know they’re playing in that team, and they know they’re going to play for the whole 90, and so they can just play how they’re playing, amble along.”
