Blackstenius sinks West Ham to no avail as Arsenal miss out on WSL title

Arsenal did what they had to do in the final game of the season: win against West Ham and hope that Chelsea slipped up against Manchester United. They did the former with two goals and a clean sheet, despite a steely defensive performance from the hosts’ defence in the first half.

The latter, however, is where their collective hopes were dashed. Chelsea, who were initially pegged back twice, scored four unanswered goals thanks to the efforts of Sam Kerr and Guro Reiten, securing a final home victory and a consecutive Women’s Super League title.

Related: Chelsea pip Arsenal to WSL title on dramatic final day – live reaction!

Though the Gunners have every right to be heartbroken, this performance, full of its usual zip and vigour, represented everything that has gone right for Jonas Eidevall and his side this season.

In the first half West Ham restricted Arsenal from operating centrally, forcing Beth Mead and her teammates to the flanks with a high-pressing 3-5-2 system. Where the defenders Leah Williamson and Lotte Wubben-Moy would usually have time to spray the ball across the field and instigate counterattacks, this time they were either occupied by Kate Longhurst or Hawa Cissoko, or busy breaking up counters.

Eidevall seemed to catch the drift of that particular trick, shouting at his players from the managerial box to “defend short” – in other words, keep the ball in dangerous areas to help create chances and continue to cultivate the pressure.

The best opportunity for it to unfold was on the West Ham left flank, where once again Mead was galloping down to provide her side with some creative joy. Having scored in her past three away games in the league, the conditions were ripe to strike a fourth time.

Instead she