Even before Beth Mead stepped onto the pitch for her first Arsenal appearance in 11 months, even before she assisted England team-mate Alessia Russo’s late winner on her return from an ACL injury, the Emirates Stadium was buzzing with excitement. Whenever Mead warmed-up on the sideline, there were raucous cheers. When she started receiving tactical instructions moments before her long-awaited return, chants of ‘Meado, Meado’ echoed around the stadium. And when she finally set foot on that pitch in the 88th minute, the noise was deafening.
For a short period, it looked like Mead’s comeback wouldn’t come on Sunday. Arsenal trailed Aston Villa from the 25th minute, when Maz Pacheco capitalised on some poor defending from a set-piece to head the visitors in front. Try as they might, the Gunners just couldn’t find a way through the visiting defence. Their winless start to the new Women’s Super League season looked set to continue.
Would head coach Jonas Eidevall take this opportunity to put in Mead, a player who had been sidelined for almost a full year? It seemed more likely that someone with a bit more match-sharpness might be trusted to come on and change the game, especially as Mead hadn’t been seen warming up for some time.
But the 35,829 fans inside the Emirates would not leave disappointed on Sunday. Not only did they get to see the return of the 2022 Ballon d’Or runner-up – they also got to see her contribute to the most incredible turnaround. In the 88th minute, Mead came on. In the 92nd minute, Katie McCabe hammered home an equaliser. In the 94th minute, Mead teed up Russo to strike home the winner.
“Pretty amazing,” the England star told reporters afterwards, describing her feelings in the moment. “It’s been a long, long time coming. There have been a lot of hard days, a lot of good days. I think, ultimately, you want to do your job, you want to do something you love - and that had been taken away for such a long time. So to be able to get out there, with that type of reception from the fans, was pretty incredible.”
"She deserves that reception. She's worked so hard,” Eidevall added. “She's had a really difficult year, both being injured and her mum passed away. We know that it's been incredibly tough for her and it's so nice to see her back on the pitch, seeing her being able to perform straight away.
“You never know that. You have the hope, otherwise I would never have put her on, but you don't know it until you've seen it. That was very nice, so a special moment.”
Patience is certainly important with a player who had been out of action for 11 months, but the early signs show that Mead is on a positive path when it comes to getting back to her best. What impact could her return have for both club and her country?