By Rachel Gore (25/1/25)
Above: Renée Slegers addresses the media ahead of Sunday’s match against Chelsea Photo: Arsenal FC
Arsenal manager Renée Slegers acknowledged what Sunday’s top of the table clash “means for fans and players” and described how Arsenal is going for the win whilst also admitting her respect for Chelsea.
Slegers addressed the media this afternoon ahead of Sunday’s top of the table clash against Chelsea.
Arsenal currently behind Chelsea in the WSL table and, therefore, all eyes are on their upcoming face off. In addition to gaining three points, Arsenal fans hope that their team will end Chelsea’s unbeaten streak.
According to Slegers, Arsenal is “aware of the threats” that Chelsea has. Specifically, she mentioned their strong upfront players and the way that they’re “goal directed” in and around the box. In response to this, the Gunners will have to be “disciplined” in their “defensive structure”.
Furthermore, she highlighted the opportunistic nature of Chelsea when she said: “they are a team that when they get chances in the game, they are likely to take them, I think that is one of their big strengths; when they get momentum, they capitalise.” This attack-driven gameplay will require Arsenal to have “high concentration levels all the way through”. A particular focus will be on the first 15 minutes which have been noted as being “important” when staff have broken down previous games “into 15-minute blocks”.
Slegers also reflected on the last time Arsenal faced Chelsea, which resulted in a victory for the Blues. She highlighted that their “momentum” then was different as they had just lost to Bayern Munich away.
Expanding on this, she said: “I and the players have a big belief in what we’re doing at the moment”. They recognise “how good Chelsea is” but will “go for the win”.
Despite this belief, Slegers acknowledged that the game will be tight with physical battles and shifting momentum. She said that the team “don’t expect to win every game”, emphasising that they are “very humble for every task”. They are being “realistic about the opposition and their strengths” and they “want to take this game and approach it as any other game”.
When expressing her “respect” for Chelsea, Slegers also admitted her admiration for their manager, Sonia Bompastor. She said that the manager is “really trying to get the best out of that team”.
Beyond this, Slegers spoke on the significance of having two female managers, who are currently managing the best two teams in the country, go head-to-head. She described how it “says something about the opportunities given and how different federations are working to get more women into top roles in football”. This evidence of female managerial talent is also a testament to the increasing “opportunities for women in sport in general”.
Speaking on her own players, Slegers confirmed that Caitlin Foord and Lia Walti will be back in the squad following their absence at Wednesday’s Brighton game. She said that they were “both on the pitch today” and that their removal from Wednesday’s squad was simply a precaution.
Wednesday’s match against Brighton also saw Slegers utilise different players, one of which being Rosa Kafaji. Speaking on Kafaji and her performance, Renee said that she sees her “as a very good player for now and for the future of Arsenal”. She highlighted the positive qualities that Kafaji brings to the team, including deep runs, dribbling and strong 1v1 battles.
One player who scored on Wednesday, and has impressed as of late, is Alessia Russo. When asked about the striker, Slegers said: “I’m very impressed with who Alessia is as a person, she’s just a very good person. She cares for everyone and her teammates, cares for staff, treats everyone with respect.” The manager also highlighted the hard work she puts in on the training pitch, highlighting that “she’s a great player to work with”.
It was Wednesday which also bought Kyra Cooney-Cross’ first official Arsenal goal. Slegers described the Matilda as “an excellent player” mentioning that younger players can “need some time to adjust” when moving to a club like Arsenal. She highlighted that Cooney-Cross has “invested a lot of work” and that this has led staff to be “very happy with her” and “the level that she’s performing at now”.
Questions were also asked about the young Arsenal players who have recently been loaned to Championship League clubs. These are Laila Harbert, Vivienne Lia and Madison Earl. Slegers said that the club try to find what’s “best for these players in the short term and long term” and that it’s good for the young Gunners to “go out on loan and get some minutes”.
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