Eidevall handed Arsenal an ambition he could not reach

The reaction on social media may have said it all. The “Jonas Out” brigade was building for weeks, to the point it was painted on a wall outside the Emirates, as Arsenal fans displayed mock P45s in the stands.

- JAMIE BRAIDWOOD

In the defeat to Chelsea on Saturday, there were boos following Mayra Ramirez’s early opener and after Sandy Baltimore had the freedom of the pitch to score a second 12 minutes later. At full time, there was no hiding from the resentment, the anger. “I’m hurting, the players are hurting,” Jonas Eidevall said.

He cut a lonely figure on the sidelines, but football is a cruel and unforgiving business. Yesterday, Eidevall resigned and the reaction of the “Jonas Out” movement was triumphant. Social media can amplify the noise of the minority but among the 45,000 Arsenal fans at the Emirates last weekend, few would have been of the view that the Swede deserved more time after the club’s dismal start to the new season.

Arsenal thanked Eidevall for his “dedication, commitment and role in the growth of the club”, yet that is also what contributed to his downfall.

Over his three years in charge, Eidevall has seen Arsenal transform as a club. Historically the most successful women’s football team in England, Arsenal have led the way into the new era. Their average home attendance is, by far, the largest in the Women’s Super League and the relationship between the team and its supporters has created a fiercely loyal core that now travels to away games in record numbers. On the pitch, Eidevall had been backed by an ambitious approach in the transfer market, assembling a squad of international talent.