Why Aston Villa boss Arroyo believed they could take points from Arsenal | OneFootball

Natalia Arroyo and Aston Villa earned a point against Brighton on opening day of the WSL

Aston Villa manager Natalia Arroyo was delighted with her team’s commitment and dedication after they snatched a 1-1 draw against Arsenal on Saturday.

Lucy Parker grabbed an equaliser in the last few seconds of stoppage time which meant the Villans took a point away from the Emirates, much to the despair of the majority of the 24,712 fans in attendance.

The last-gasp goal cancelled out Frida Maanum’s tenth-minute opener, which capitalised on endeavour and vision from Mariona Caldentey following a defensive error.

And Arroyo was thrilled with her team’s spirit and focus.

“We came here with a dream and with a belief of trying to get the three points, knowing it would be hard,” Arroyo told the Aston Villa club television channel.

“After not the best start, we were not necessarily scared but a little bit lower in the block, not having enough passes, we also had the mistake, we conceded a goal, but wow, the game that we started playing after 1-0, I was feeling we were there.

“Half-time, good work. Second half, more work, and super happy.

“We were celebrating…in extra-time you cannot get much more than a draw!”

Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers had said ahead of the match that she knew Villa would present problems, saying: “We respect Aston Villa. Of course, we played a hard game away last year against Villa, so we know that we need to be on our best on Saturday.”

She added: “If they will do what we expect them to do, they will be very aggressive against us. We will have to find the solutions. So it will be a tough task.”

Aston Villa: their season so far

Villa have had a slow start to the season, opening with a goalless draw against Brighton and Hove Albion, followed by a 3-1 defeat at home to defending champions Chelsea.

Their match against Liverpool last weekend was postponed due to the sudden passing of former Reds head coach Matt Beard.

They then lost a penalty shoot-out to Tottenham Hotspur in the group stage of the Subway Women’s League Cup in midweek, following a goalless draw in normal time.

Villa’s next match is against West Ham United, on Sunday, 5th October.