Arsenal failed to take advantage of their dominance at the Emirates, conceding a stoppage-time equaliser to draw 1-1 with Aston Villa after a sloppy second half.
The home side struck early, with Frida Maanum finishing coolly in the 10th minute after Mariona Caldentey pounced on a Villa mistake.
Arsenal controlled possession and created 19 shots, with 46 touches in the visitors’ box, but lacked the composure to extend their lead.
As the match wore on, Villa sensed their opportunity. Chasity Grant and Ebony Salmon both threatened before the visitors finally capitalised deep into added time.
Arsenal failed to deal with Lyn Wilms’ corner, and substitute Lucy Parker lashed in from close range to punish their slack defending.
The result leaves Arsenal with back-to-back draws, sitting second in the WSL table with eight points from four matches, a point behind Chelsea who also have a game in hand. The frustration lies not only in the late goal but in how inevitable it seemed.
Maanum offered the brightest performance in attack, but across the team there was a lack of sharpness and edge. Against opponents who grew in belief, Arsenal’s inability to finish chances and vulnerability at set pieces proved decisive.
Villa celebrated a point gained, while for Arsenal it felt very much like two lost.
Before the game, Renee Slegers had spoken about the need “to be on our best” against Villa. The Gunners were far from that.
Speaking after the match, Slegers said, “It’s tough, it’s frustrating.
“I think we scored an early goal from a pressing moment. So we had an early 1-0 lead and that’s what we wanted and what we needed.
“There was the energy at the Emirates with the fans behind it, so that was everything we wanted. I think there’s some good moments in the game where we did things very well. I think we had 19 shots this game and that’s close to where we want to be or that’s on average. So that was positive.
“I think when it’s only 1-0 and you don’t kill the game with another goal then the opposition is always going to stay in the game and have some form of belief. So every time they were in our half from a counter-attack or creating a set piece which they scored from, they came up with a lot of motivation and belief. And that’s what we have to know.
“So the big learning for us is to kill the game earlier.”