The Lionesses striker was twice denied by the crossbar on Saturday, but Jonas Eidevall's side were still able to progress to the next round.
You could almost hear the sigh of relief when the final whistle went and Arsenal secured their place in the second round of Champions League qualifying on Saturday night, by virtue of a 1-0 win over Rosenborg. The Gunners crashed out at this stage last season and so as long as that second goal continued to evade them, despite a dominant performance, the nerves were always going to build among the home faithful. Fortunately for them, an opportunistic finish from Norway international Frida Maanum was enough to break the hearts of the team from her homeland and put Arsenal into Monday's draw.
It was a positive start from Jonas Eidevall's side and, after warning shots were fired by Mariona Caldentey and Alessia Russo, Maanum opened the scoring with less than 20 minutes played, with a helping hand from some rather calamitous Rosenborg defending. The Norwegian side fell behind in their shock win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday but rallied late on to set up this clash and it was clear that their plan from this point onwards was to replicate that success. They rode their luck to stay alive in the game, though, with Russo hitting the crossbar and Maanum firing just wide before the break.
It was more of the same in the second half, with the only difference being that Rosenborg became increasingly more adventurous. That will have no doubt had the Arsenal fans getting a little more nervy as Russo again struck the woodwork and Kyra Cooney-Cross followed her lead seconds later, while Leah Williamson saw a header cleared off the line. But Maanum's early finish proved to be enough to move the Gunners on to the second round of Champions League qualifying, with them to find out their next European opponent in Monday's draw.
GOAL rates Arsenal's players from Meadow Park…
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Manuela Zinsberger (6/10):
Good starting position for when Rosenborg tried a few long ball counter attacks. Had little to do again, though.
Emily Fox (7/10):
Was constantly in the final third, prodding and probing at the Rosenborg defence. Not everything came off but she caused problems.
Laia Codina (6/10):
Wasn't called upon much, but stood up tall when she was.
Leah Williamson (6/10):
Looks sharper with each game that comes. Great in possession.
Katie McCabe (6/10):
Got forward well, combined brilliantly with Mariona at times and delivered some good set pieces.
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Kim Little (7/10):
Another sublime display in which she kept things ticking in midfield.
Kyra Cooney-Cross (6/10):
Dangerous over dead ball situations and mature in her passing.
Frida Maanum (7/10):
Showed good awareness to pounce on some defensive chaos to break the deadlock. Took up fantastic positions.
Attack
Caitlin Foord (7/10):
Put some dangerous crosses in from the right, including the one that led to Arsenal's opener.
Alessia Russo (7/10):
Linked up well with those around her and was looking to shoot whenever there was a slight chance, going close on several occasions.
Mariona Caldentey (7/10):
Was always positive, whether by creating for others or getting shots off in the final third.
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Stina Blackstenius (5/10):
Came on for the final 20 minutes but struggled to get involved much.
Beth Mead (N/A):
Returned from injury in the final minutes.
Lia Walti (N/A):
Came on to help Arsenal see the game out late on.
Jonas Eidevall (7/10):
Stuck with the same XI that did the job against Rangers in midweek and those players rewarded his faith. There will be some concerns that his side struggled against a low block, a theme throughout last season, but the woodwork did come to Rosenborg's rescue on three separate occasions, too.