Arsenal slumped to another defeat against Manchester City and Champions League qualification looks near impossible for the second season, so is it time to change the manager and replace Joe Montemurro?

BOREHAMWOOD, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 07: Joe Montemurro, Manager of Arsenal reacts during the Barclays FA Women's Super League match between Arsenal Women and Manchester City Women at Meadow Park on February 07, 2021 in Borehamwood, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
BOREHAMWOOD, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 07: Joe Montemurro, Manager of Arsenal reacts during the Barclays FA Women’s Super League match between Arsenal Women and Manchester City Women at Meadow Park on February 07, 2021 in Borehamwood, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Arsenal missed out a big chance in their fight to secure Champions League football by losing 2-1 at home to Manchester City on a day the top two teams lost at home, something that never happens in the FA WSL.

The league table looks really grim this morning:

https://twitter.com/BarclaysFAWSL/status/1358490715362385920

Arsenal trail Chelsea and Manchester United by nine points and Manchester City by seven. A realistic/pessimistic view is that is it for this season and there will be no Champions League for two seasons in a row. That means time for a change.

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An optimistic view is Arsenal have two games in hand over Manchester United and one over Chelsea and Manchester City. But, if we look at the WSL form table, it is hard to be optimistic.

Two wins, one draw and two defeats in the last five games is not Champions League form at all. Especially, with Chelsea on W4 L1, United W3 L2 and City W5, the problem is there for all to see. The team is not performing well right now.

Wednesday’s game at Chelsea will give us another hint towards what could happen in the summer, but there is no doubt that, should the club not qualify for the Champions League for the second season in a row, there will be growing calls for the manager to go.

Next summer might be the right time for a new manager to come in, with new ideas and the ability to change the squad and bring new players to fit their philosophy.

The best outcome right now would be for the Arsenal to finish in the top 3, qualify for the Champions League and make squad adjustments to compete next season.

But, if for some reason, and there might be many of them, the squad is fragmented due to recent events and no longer responds to the manager, it will certainly be time to change and start a new cycle.

At the end of the day, a three year, seven-month stint, with a number of trophies, would certainly qualify as a good era for the club, especially when you consider the disaster that happened after Laura Harvey left the club.

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