Latest news with #StinaBlackstenius
The Sun
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Arsenal transfer news LIVE: Real ‘eye Lewis-Skelly', Gunners locked in £67m Gyokeres battle, Sesko's HUGE price tag
Wright's Arteta dig Arsenal legend Ian Wright aimed a brutal dig at Mikel Arteta's side, who are set for yet another second-place finish for the third year in a row. Arsenal Women brought a massive smile to the club following an epic Champions League triumph over Barcelona. Renee Slegers' side picked up a heroic 1-0 victory over Barca thanks to Stina Blackstenius' winner on Saturday at the Jose Alvalade Stadium. And Wright sang the women's team's praises by insisting they "saved the club from embarrassment". Saved the club from the embarrassment of getting nothing this season when we played so well in the season with the men. The ladies have saved the club, we have got something to celebrate. Of course they need a parade, they have beaten Barcelona in the Champions League [final], no one gave them a chance. Even I was saying it was going to be tough because they [Barcelona] average four goals a game! So we needed to score goals to make sure that we beat them, in the end it was only one but everybody wrote them off. They deserve everything they are getting, all the accolades because this is a magnificent achievement. Look how far it's come, I remember the Champions League being at Boreham Wood, look where we are and Arsenal winning it, it's amazing! Ian WrightTNT Sports
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Arsenal Champions League hero misses international training due to ‘illness'
Stina Blackstenius misses Sweden training through illness after Arsenal's UWCL win Photo byFresh from delivering Arsenal's first Women's Champions League title since 2007 with her decisive strike against Barcelona, Stina Blackstenius missed Sweden training due to illness. Advertisement The 29-year-old forward, hailed as a national hero after her winner in Lisbon, was notably absent from preparations in Italy ahead of Sweden's Nations League matches against Italy and Denmark. Few could blame her. National team doctor Houman Ebrahimi confirmed she was 'showing symptoms of illness' and had yet to join the squad. With Arsenal players involved in post-victory celebrations during Monday's parade, it is perhaps more surprising that any Arsenal players managed to make it to their international camps in time at all.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
From Linköping to Lisbon: retracing Blackstenius' steps to Arsenal icon status
Of the many enduring images of Arsenal's celebrations after their Women's Champions League triumph over Barcelona, one in particular emphasised the magnitude and rarity of the contribution made by their goalscorer, Stina Blackstenius. The Arsenal striker was photographed holding the trophy aloft alongside Alex Scott, the scorer of the only goal in their only previous European final 18 years earlier, and as the pair posed together, it hit home that Blackstenius had scored one of the two biggest goals in the club's history. The 29-year-old Sweden striker's name will now be immortalised in Arsenal Women folklore and, despite predominantly playing as a substitute in the past two seasons, she has developed a knack for delivering in the biggest moments, scoring the winner in the 2024 League Cup final and in the 2023 League Cup final. It might seem at odds with her Women's Super League return of just five league goals this season - she has never hit double figures in the league for Arsenal in a single campaign - but to those who have followed her career since she was in her mid-teens, her success in Lisbon was no surprise. Martin Sjögren was in charge at the Swedish top-flight club Linköping when he signed a then 16-year-old Blackstenius from Sweden's lower leagues, where she had averaged more than a goal per game, prior to their 2013 season, and he recalls: 'She was a very big talent but very, very shy. Not on the pitch, but talking to the media especially, she didn't like that and she was very shy, but that was off the pitch – on the pitch, she played with the same characteristics as she has now, she had a lot of speed, a lot of physicality and she was scoring a lot of goals. 'She was a big talent back then [prior to signing for Linköping]. During those years she had scored so many goals in the lower leagues, so more or less everyone knew about Stina and Linköping were the closest elite team from where she played, so it was quite natural for her to join Linköping. She was very physical – for her age, she had the physique already, so that's always been important for Stina, to be able to run, to tackle, to work hard. You can still see that in her, it's a big part of her game.' Just over two-and-half years after moving to Linköping, Blackstenius would make her senior Sweden debut, and since then she has gone on to score 35 times in 115 senior internationals for Sweden. Sjögren, who is coaching Hammarby, says: 'She's always been the type of player that can create chances, score chances, more or less on her own, because of her speed, and because she can finish with both her left and her right foot. 'Still, what I saw in her years ago, I still see that today, this is what she still does, but at a much higher level. She's still the same type of player. It [Saturday's winner over Barcelona] was a nice moment especially for Stina, she's a hard worker so I really think she deserves the best.' After breaking through Linköping, Blackstenius' career would take her to the French league with Montpellier before a return to Linköping and then a 2020 switch to Hacken, who were then known as Kopparbergs/Göteborg, where she won the title in her first campaign and scored in the 2021 Swedish cup final. Soon she was a transfer target for Arsenal and the head coach who brought her to north London in 2022, Jonas Eidevall, says: 'I don't think it is a coincidence that she has scored in all three finals during her time at Arsenal. She has a really good intelligence in how to find a good position in-front of the goal.' Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion Eidevall, who stepped down from his role at Arsenal last October and is now coaching the San Diego Wave, who are second in the NWSL, says: 'Stina had proved so many times with the Swedish national team that she is a player for the big games, scoring deciding goals in knock-out matches. 'I think she has improved her technical level dramatically since she arrived at Arsenal, which also means that she's a much more well-rounded forward who can finish in more ways and operate both behind and in front of the back line.' Speaking after the final whistle in Lisbon, Blackstenius insisted on praising the 'team performance' rather than wanting to talk about herself, and told TNT Sports: 'I just can't believe it, all of it. I just can't believe we won the Champions League and we get to celebrate.' Even in that, proudest of moments, she still came across a little shy in a live post-match interview, but in front of goal, she is fearless.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
From Linköping to Lisbon: retracing Blackstenius' steps to Arsenal icon status
Of the many enduring images of Arsenal's celebrations after their Women's Champions League triumph over Barcelona, one in particular emphasised the magnitude and rarity of the contribution made by their goalscorer, Stina Blackstenius. The Arsenal striker was photographed holding the trophy aloft alongside Alex Scott, the scorer of the only goal in their only previous European final 18 years earlier, and as the pair posed together, it hit home that Blackstenius had scored one of the two biggest goals in the club's history. The 29-year-old Sweden striker's name will now be immortalised in Arsenal Women folklore and, despite predominantly playing as a substitute in the past two seasons, she has developed a knack for delivering in the biggest moments, scoring the winner in the 2024 League Cup final and in the 2023 League Cup final. Advertisement Related: Mary Earps made indelible mark with England and leaves big gloves to fill | Suzanne Wrack It might seem at odds with her Women's Super League return of just five league goals this season - she has never hit double figures in the league for Arsenal in a single campaign - but to those who have followed her career since she was in her mid-teens, her success in Lisbon was no surprise. Martin Sjögren was in charge at the Swedish top-flight club Linköping when he signed a then 16-year-old Blackstenius from Sweden's lower leagues, where she had averaged more than a goal per game, prior to their 2013 season, and he recalls: 'She was a very big talent but very, very shy. Not on the pitch, but talking to the media especially, she didn't like that and she was very shy, but that was off the pitch – on the pitch, she played with the same characteristics as she has now, she had a lot of speed, a lot of physicality and she was scoring a lot of goals. 'She was a big talent back then [prior to signing for Linköping]. During those years she had scored so many goals in the lower leagues, so more or less everyone knew about Stina and Linköping were the closest elite team from where she played, so it was quite natural for her to join Linköping. She was very physical – for her age, she had the physique already, so that's always been important for Stina, to be able to run, to tackle, to work hard. You can still see that in her, it's a big part of her game.' Just over two-and-half years after moving to Linköping, Blackstenius would make her senior Sweden debut, and since then she has gone on to score 35 times in 115 senior internationals for Sweden. Sjögren, who is coaching Hammarby, says: 'She's always been the type of player that can create chances, score chances, more or less on her own, because of her speed, and because she can finish with both her left and her right foot. Advertisement 'Still, what I saw in her years ago, I still see that today, this is what she still does, but at a much higher level. She's still the same type of player. It [Saturday's winner over Barcelona] was a nice moment especially for Stina, she's a hard worker so I really think she deserves the best.' After breaking through Linköping, Blackstenius' career would take her to the French league with Montpellier before a return to Linköping and then a 2020 switch to Hacken, who were then known as Kopparbergs/Göteborg, where she won the title in her first campaign and scored in the 2021 Swedish cup final. Soon she was a transfer target for Arsenal and the head coach who brought her to north London in 2022, Jonas Eidevall, says: 'I don't think it is a coincidence that she has scored in all three finals during her time at Arsenal. She has a really good intelligence in how to find a good position in-front of the goal.' Eidevall, who stepped down from his role at Arsenal last October and is now coaching the San Diego Wave, who are second in the NWSL, says: 'Stina had proved so many times with the Swedish national team that she is a player for the big games, scoring deciding goals in knock-out matches. 'I think she has improved her technical level dramatically since she arrived at Arsenal, which also means that she's a much more well-rounded forward who can finish in more ways and operate both behind and in front of the back line.' Speaking after the final whistle in Lisbon, Blackstenius insisted on praising the 'team performance' rather than wanting to talk about herself, and told TNT Sports: 'I just can't believe it, all of it. I just can't believe we won the Champions League and we get to celebrate.' Even in that, proudest of moments, she still came across a little shy in a live post-match interview, but in front of goal, she is fearless.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Arsenal are the champions of Europe: Women's Football Weekly
On the podcast today: Arsenal pull off a sensational 1-0 win over Barcelona to lift the Women's Champions League for the first time since 2007. Stina Blackstenius was the hero in Lisbon, Kim Little became a European champion, and Renée Slegers cemented her remarkable start in charge. The panel relive the match, the atmosphere and the iconic celebrations that took place across Lisbon and north London. Plus, the panel speaks with Adrian Jacob, head of football at World Sevens Football, about the inaugural tournament in Portugal, its reception from players and clubs, and what's next for the format. All that, your questions, and a thoughtful discussion on the future growth of the women's game. Sign up for our weekly women's football newsletter – all you need to do is search 'Moving the Goalposts sign up' or follow this link. Support the Guardian here.
