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Arsenal 0 Barcelona 4: Little reckons heavy home defeat for WSL leaders was an ‘honest slap in the face’

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KIM LITTLE wants Arsenal to bounce back from a 4-0 drubbing dished out by Barcelona at the Emirates.

A Fridolina Rolfo rocket was among the strikes that saw the Catalan side outclass and out pass the Gunners.

Kim Little wants Arsenal to reflect on how they can reach Barcelona’s levelCredit: Getty
Fridolina Rolfo scored netted a stunning right-footed effort for the visitors close to half-timeCredit: Rex

The match comes four days after Arsenal – who face Leicester next – fell to a 3-1 FA Cup final loss to Chelsea.

And it saw Barcelona book their Champions League quarter-final spot ahead of a domestic clash with Real Madrid.

The Gunners’ captain said: “We’re disappointed to have lost and conceded four goals at home.

“Barcelona are probably the best team right now and are very hard to play against.

“There’s a lot of things that were better for us today than in our previous game against them.

“But there are still a lot of things that weren’t good enough.

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“And I think we really need to go away from this performance as we did from our last one against Barca and look at what those areas are.

“These experiences can be really helpful in helping us to see where our level is at and what we need to aim for. It’s a real, honest slap in the face.”

Jonas Eidevall called for a change in mentality for his players against the best club side in European women’s football.

However, Spain’s champs had other ideas in the clash watched by a 12,232-strong crowd.

Barcelona’s men’s team may have flopped in Europe in this term.

But it is an altogether different story for the women’s side who have won 17 out of 17 games played in Spain and the Champions League.

The visitors refused to give an inch to their hosts with Vivianne Miedema surprisingly starting the game on the bench.

They dominated the ball from the early stages enjoying 74 per cent possession in the first half.

Jenni Hermoso bagged a brace for Barcelona at the EmiratesCredit: Getty

Among Arsenal’s limited chances on goal was a long-range Jordan Nobbs shot in the ninth minute that flew over the crossbar.

But the visitors made their dominance tell taking advantage of some stray passes.

These included Jen Beattie’s under-hit back pass pounced on by Aitana Bonmati who slotted home Barca’s 23rd-minute opener.

It took another six minutes for the visitors to double their lead with Jenni Hermoso netting from close range following a cross from Rolfo.

And Rolfo got on the scoresheet herself walloping a right-footed rocket into the top corner on the stroke of half-time.

The second half saw Eidevall shuffle his deck with Miedema, Lia Walti and Mana Iwabuchi all coming on for Jordan Nobbs, Frida Maanum and Caitlin Foord.

And Nikita Parris prompted a comfortable save Sandra Panos in the 66th minute.

Aitana Bonmati took advantage of a poor back pass to net Barcelona’s openerCredit: Getty

But Barca – who hit the woodwork minute in 52nd minute – went four up with a quarter of an hour of normal time remaining.

Hermoso sealed her brace by tapping in a low cross to wrap up a 4-0 win for the visitors.

And the result leaves Arsenal needing a point from their final group stage game to reach the Champions League quarter-finals.

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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk

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