‘We needed to let her have that opportunity to repay everything Jen has done for us.’ Arseblog exclusive as Jonas Eidevall pays tribute to departing Jen Beattie

When an injury ravaged Arsenal fought their way back from a two goal deficit in the first half of last season’s Champions League semi-final against Wolfsburg, Jonas Eidevall singled out the performance of Jen Beattie at centre-half.

Beattie had only played fitfully during the campaign but a severe injury crisis meant she was called upon to anchor a back three. Eidevall referred to Beattie as a ‘culture setter.’ As she prepares to leave the club for NWSL expansion team Bay FC this week, Arseblog News asked Jonas Eidevall to revisit that phrase.

‘Last season was a great example of that,’ the Arsenal coach explained. ‘A player that didn’t play that much in periods of the season but as a squad player at that time, worked really hard in training which made her ready for when the opportunity arose.

‘Also, as a human being and player off the pitch, Jen really supported and grew the team’s standards. When you see a player like that taking the chance like she did when it arose at the end of last season, it really sets the standard for anyone in the squad.

‘Anyone who comes into a situation where they say ‘I am not playing as much as I would like, does that mean I have to change? No. Do I give less to the team? No. Do I not need to prepare as if I play every week? No.’ Because you need to do it.

‘Because what reality shows us and what Jen showed us is that those things make a massive difference if you as a team will be successful. So I really think she put all the values I see as a team player into action last season.’

Beattie is joining Bay FC who will join the NWSL as an expansion team next season. They have also recruited Barcelona and former Gunners striker Asisat Oshoala this week. Eidevall says that the signing of Beattie makes a lot of sense for a nascent team.

‘That is a steal from their perspective. If you are starting a new organisation and you want someone that is now at the highest level and understands what a team needs to be high performing, but also not any team, it is a steal.

‘From what I understand with Bay FC, they want to go about it a little differently from most teams in the NWSL, they want to play a possession-based game and a controlled style of football.

‘Then it is really important to get players in from those environments and I don’t think that’s a coincidence that when you see some of their signings coming from environments like that to be able to enrich their style.’

Arseblog News asks Eidevall whether it was a difficult decision to allow Beattie to leave. He said it was tough from a strictly footballing perspective but that he felt he and the club owed Beattie the chance to explore the opportunity given the level of her service over the years.

‘If I only look with the club’s perspective to keep her as a player, yeah that would have been the right decision. But I don’t believe working with humans works that way.

‘You cannot only take. You have to give and take and that is how you get respect. Jen has given so much and this was a really good opportunity for her coming at a stage in her career when you don’t know if that is going to come again.

‘When she wanted to explore that opportunity I think we needed to let her have that choice, also to repay her for everything she has done for us. Then it wasn’t a tough decision.’

Tough decision or otherwise, it’s an emotional afternoon for Arsenal fans to lose such an iconic and long serving player. I, for one, am really glad a player like Jen got ‘that moment’ with her equaliser against Wolfsburg at a sold out Emirates Stadium in May.

WSL players in their 30s stand at a difficult crossroads of not entirely benefitting from the recent explosion of interest in women’s football in the UK and you fear some of them won’t quite get the legacy they deserve. Beattie’s goal against Wolfsburg in front of a sold out stadium is a shared cultural moment for Arsenal fans new and old.

Inside the club Beattie’s influence requires no such caveats. As someone quite a but younger than me might say, Arsenal have lost a real one today. Good luck in the US, Jen.