Profound cascade of emotions surrounded Arsenal fans when Rafaelle Souza announced her departure just ahead of the conclusion of last season, and she is expected to leave a massive hollow in that last line when Jonas Eidevall’s squad lines-up in the tunnel the next time.
But football moves on, and Arsenal Women have taken steps to fill Rafaelle shaped hole left by her departure by lining up Swedish international Amanda Ilestedt as her replacement. The summer transfer window has begun, and Arsenal are wasting no time in strengthening their defence.
With Leah Williamson expected to be out for a while, it adds more pressure into getting that defensive recruitment right…
Enter Amanda Ilestedt, a 30-year-old Swedish defender who has recently left Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG), a renowned entity in the realm of women’s European football. Ilestedt boasts an impressive professional background, having previously competed in the Swedish Damallsvenskan league and represented esteemed German clubs such as Turbine Potsdam and Bayern Munich, prior to her current tenure with PSG.
In 2013, she made her debut for the senior Sweden Women’s team and subsequently participated in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2013 as a member of the squad. Ilestedt has been selected as one of the 23 players to represent the national team in the upcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, alongside Lina Hurtig and Stina Blackstenius, who both play for Arsenal as well.
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Ilestedt is an interesting acquisition for Arsenal Women’s – she brings on-the-ball prowess with her progressive passes in the build-up complemented by that much required aerial adroitness. Yes, she wouldn’t give you the Rafaelle flair that we are quite used to see from time to time at Meadow Park but Amanda Ilestedt is a really good into being an integral part of that build-up phase and making sure the ball progresses into offence.
Jonas would be licking his fingers if Arsenal were to get this transfer concluded, she fits his style of play to the T…
