By Chloe Reynolds (5/10/26)
Above: Renee Slegers smiling in training before her side faces Brighton. Photo: Arsenal FC
Arsenal face off against Brighton & Hove Albion in their WSL season opener and head coach Renee Slegers sat down with the media to address her side’s targets for the season, how the summer transfer window has happened, and how they have prepared for their opponents.
Slegers shared the team news for the weekend revealing that the game comes a little bit too soon for deadline day signing Elisa De Almeida.
“Our rehab players at the moment are Daphne van Domselaar, Katie Reid, and Michelle Agyemang, and everyone else is fit to play.
“(it) will probably be too early for Elisa, first day, yesterday, her visa had to come through, no training for her today.
“So, there will be one session to then go in. So, it’s probably a little bit too early. We really want to get it right with her.”
The Gunners have had an extremely successful transfer window, signing eight players including some big names such as Ona Batlle and Georgia Stanway, and Slegers has said that this transfer window was a long time in the making.
“I think the work that’s been going on in the background for a long time between Claire, Jody, Kevin, and their recruitment department.
“It’s been so strong, so we’ve been planning for this window for a long time. Of course, age is part of what we look at as one of the factors.
“So, really happy that we get players in their prime ages where we see this. They’re at their prime, but there’s more to come from these players.
“But also, the younger ones that we were so happy. We got them on board. They chose us. They want to be part of Arsenal as well, if you look at Isabella and Lisa, they’re young, but they’re so mature for their age, and I’m really, really impressed with where they are and the courage that they’ve shown, the humility that they’ve shown as well.
“So, yeah, age plays a role in the decisions we make and I think with all these coming in, I’m so happy with the strategy behind it.”
It’s been a long time since Arsenal have won the WSL title, and the Dutch head coach has spoken about her ambitions of lifting that trophy in May.
“That’s something we’re going after, and of course we are because we Arsenal and that’s something we should have as a goal, so definitely the WSL.
“I think last time was 2018/2019 for Arsenal. And yeah, there’s a real hunger. Of course, there’s other competitions, the draw for Champions League was today (September 4) and there’s the FA Cup.
“So, those competitions are very important for us as well, but the WSL that’s something because it’s with the two teams coming in, there’s more games, it’s symbolic for endurance and consistency, and that’s something where we really have our mind set.”
Brighton have recently announced that they have a new coach in Arturo Ruiz and Slegers spoke about the quality the seagulls have.
“I think they’re a good team. They know when to press and press aggressively and make spaces small quickly, but they also know how to be patient and make it really compact in front of their goals.
“So yeah, it’s been hard games for us, we acknowledge that. We won the game at the Emirates but the other two weren’t the results we wanted, we look forward to the challenge and we know that there’s things that they will make hard for us.
“And of course, there’s a big belief in what we’re doing at the moment, the quality that we possess and the different tools that we have to use on Sunday. So, I really look forward to the input.”
It will be a tough end of year for the gunners as they will have champions League games falling alongside WSL and FA cup games, and Slegers has shared how she plans to manage the squad.
“What we’ve done in the window that we have so many good players that can play for us when the short turnarounds come and when we see necessary.
“Of course, we prepare for the opposition that we’re going to face. So, there’s a lot of preparation. We have our ideas, but then it’s still when the moments are there, we have to see how everything is playing out in the moment.
“So, there’s still a lot of course, late decision making in those short turnarounds and stuff.”
Arsenal face Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday with the game kicking off at 12:00.
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