Walti: "The team showed the right character"

After we claimed a point away to Manchester United on a thrilling Friday evening, Lia Walti shared her belief that the squad is heading in the right direction.

"I think we can be happy with a draw," said Walti. "If you score a goal in almost the last minute, that's always quite lucky! 

“We deserved it, we put in a good shift in the second half and we were on top of them towards the end of the game.”

We opened the scoring with a superbly-taken goal from Stina Blackstenius but the hosts clawed their way back into the tie through two fortunate goals. Walti’s quietly powerful presence in both boxes was essential as we continued to fight for a result. 

“I thought it was really transitional. Man United is always going to be a physical game, so we had to accept the fight. We had to go into the tackles.

"In the end, I think the team showed the right energy and character and that's what we needed today."

As we edged nearer and nearer to full-time, a moment of individual brilliance from Cloe Lacasse rescued a point. Receiving a pass from Walti with her back to goal, our Canadian forward used her skill to turn and send the ball soaring into the top-left corner. 

“I felt towards the end that the ball just didn’t want to go in anymore! But then Cloe puts out that strike - amazing. I’m happy for her to score her first Arsenal goal and it was very important for us tonight.”

Now, the focus turns to next weekend as we host Aston Villa in front of another huge crowd at Emirates Stadium. 

"Today was a step in the right direction. I think we put on the energy we missed last week and if we combine that with good football and take our opportunities, then I think it's going to come.

"We're working hard through the week and in the end, we're gonna make sure that we deserve that win next week in front of our home crowd."

To hear our full interview with Lia, click play on the button above.