Renée Slegers was back in front of the media for her pre-Tottenham Hotspur press conference at the Sobha Realty Training Centre on Friday.
Our head coach looked ahead to Saturday's north London derby, shared the latest team news and more.
Here's everything she had to say on the following subjects...
on the latest team news regarding Kelly, Van Domselaar, Reid, Agyemang and Little:
We have the same squad available as we had against Birmingham. Daphne will be in the squad, it’s too early to play, but we want to get her back in the routine with the team and she’ll do the warm-up. Kim is managing a knock as well, we hope to have her back soon but she won’t make it this weekend. Chloe isn’t yet ready to play, Katie is training with the team now and looks really good. Mich is working in the background, so that’s everything so far.
on if Spurs might over correct after conceding a lot of goals lately:
They play high-risk, high-reward football - that’s their identity. I can’t go into their camp and know what they’re thinking, but they have a strong identity and could play the way they’ve been playing. Let’s see tomorrow.
on if seeing less of 4-4-2 out of possession has been deliberate:
Different reasons, a little bit with personnel. I think you’ve seen that block in certain phases, but we’ve also done other things, looking to see how we can stop things and create things. We’re aware we need to be better in our counter-attacking moments, both from lower areas on the pitch and also higher up, because we do a lot of good work out of possession in the attacking half - we want to create more chances from that. It’s different games with different gameplans.
on elements of the game we’ve worked on:
Being faster is absolutely something we’ve worked on, because we know last year we played a lot against low blocks and compact organisations. Looking for moments we can go faster and be unpredictable is something we’ve looked to add to our game. There are times we’ve had to chase a goal in almost every game we’ve played so far, where we go more optimistic and get into certain spaces just to get the ball into the box.
on Pelova’s start at Spurs and our huge away following tomorrow:
I think sometimes a change in your life can get something new out of you. Of course, I care for Vic and that she plays and does well. We're looking forward to seeing her tomorrow, but our focus is on the here and now, this game, there’s nothing else that we think about. We have a sold-out away section, we need to fight on the pitch for 90-plus minutes, and we need to do it for the fans because we need to do more for them. It’s our biggest fuel in the game, to give everything for the fans.
on what embodies the Arsenal way about how we want to play:
I think how we look to dominate in possession, be unpredictable and fluid with our positioning, how we break lines, get a lot of bodies forward in attack - all those things. I think what you’ve seen is we haven’t rewarded ourselves at the final stage. I think it’s about both boxes, where we’ve been vulnerable at the back with a couple of breaks, when opposition comes through it goes fast, and we need to manage that better. It’s really about both boxes and what happens in between, we absolutely need to maintain both sides and it must be better.
on if she’s surprised to still be in the head coach position:
That’s not something I think about. It’s about where we are as a group, and what we’re working towards. It’s absolutely not what we wanted or expected eight games into the season, but I’m in the here-and-now. We’re preparing for the north London derby tomorrow, and we have the group together in the same direction - like I just said, the fuel and motivation is sky-high because of the fans that will be there for us. That’s where my focus is.
on what our targets are for the remainder of the season:
At the moment, I’m not looking at the table - my mindset is to take it game-by-game. The next one is the north London derby, we look forward to it coming right now, and like I said, the fight we will bring for the fans tomorrow is the only thing we’re thinking about.
on what needs to be the next goal:
Like I just said, we’ll go game-by-game and we’re not thinking further ahead, because that’s not where our focus needs to be right now. We’re looking just at the next game, and that’s the north London derby.
on if she’s worried about the reaction if we have a negative result:
I can't be thinking about that. Looking back, that was the sound of care, I think, what we heard at the stadium. So many people in the stadium buying a ticket to watch us play and that was the sound of care and the sound of frustration, which was totally to its right. So for tomorrow, like I said, we are blessed with the fans that we have and that they're showing up and that we're selling out the away section and we're going to do it for them because I know how much they want it and I know how much they're invested and that's going to be a big thing for us.
on having a full week in training between matches:
We've stated where we are. We've stated reality and it's exactly the same. What we need to do right now is focus game by game and the next one is the north London derby. It's been a good week. We've finally had some time and it's not only about talking and meeting and those things. For us, it's been more about actions. So we've had a really good training week where we've rescheduled a little bit and where we've really had the time spent on the pitch. So that's been really good for us. Today, a very sharp session and we look forward to tomorrow.
on if we can draw from previous experiences with our backs against the wall:
Yeah, we know how good we are and can be and it's going to be a big occasion tomorrow. The players love big occasions so it will bring something out of us tomorrow. So yeah, of course we've been talking about that. And then in combination, I've said it so many times with the fans, that's it for me. So in combination with the fans tomorrow.
on if Spurs playing in a different stadium to usual could be an advantage for us:
I think it will be a fight on the pitch, wherever it is. I think the pitch will be of high quality and big size, which is good. But yeah, it's all about the fight on the pitch tomorrow. Because like I said, they play high-risk, high-reward football. There's going to be duels and there's going to be 1v1 moments on the pitch and we have to be really good in those moments. So we want to see a fight from the team tomorrow.
on the noise around the derby:
I don't know how many I've been a part of now, north London derbies, but it's become special to me as well. After these years at Arsenal, I know what it feels like, what it means for so many people. So I look forward to it. I look forward to the occasion. I look forward to seeing our team in red going against them and giving absolutely everything on the pitch and then again with the fans. So I look forward to the occasion tomorrow.
on if she’s noticed any changes at Spurs this season:
I think some things that they're doing this year, which they do well, they did last year as well. Maybe in an even more extreme or at a higher level. So yeah, I think everyone's seen it. When I talk about high risk, high reward, they press and they're not shy to go play every player across the pitch, rotate their players in the middle of the pitch. So they play very brave football, which when they're successful, it's really good. But yeah, of course we see opportunities tomorrow.
on what’s needed for a WSL player to win the Ballon d’Or:
Well, they often look at the trophies you win as a team as well and then your individual performances within. So I'd say you're going to have to win trophies, European trophies and be a standout player. And I think there's some really, really good players in this league. So yeah, it will be exciting to see and follow how that's going to play out at the end of the year.
on how important it is to her:
Well, to be fair, for me, nothing is really important right now. And the only thing that I'm thinking about is tomorrow. So everything that's bigger and further away, it's not really on my mind at the moment.
on having so many London derbies:
This is the biggest game of the season for certain fans, maybe even for players and staff at the club. So this is a special one, absolutely.
on if there’s one great memory that stands out of previous derbies:
I think last year was amazing at the Emirates at home. Again, the fight that you feel on the pitch. The fans that are so loud and get so much behind it. I think... The one away, to feel that. That's two seasons ago, to feel that. North London derby at the away stadium and what we can create there. So I think those would be the two standing out for me. I haven't been part of so many now when I think about it.
on if this is the biggest game for our homegrown players:
Yeah there’s certainly players in our squad that see this and perceive this game as one of the biggest ones of the season.
on Williamson’s dad being a Spurs fan:
Yeah, I believe her dad isn’t making it tomorrow, so the Arsenal side of the family will be there.
on how important it is to get the win tomorrow:
Super important, for the run of games that we’ve had, but I’m bringing it back there again, it’s very important for us, for the club, for the fans, for the people that care about Arsenal. Like I said, it’s the most important game, for some people, of the season. It’s an important game, and for us it comes at a good time.
on if there has been more intensity in training this week:
Yeah, and it’s also something we’ve asked for, because we’ve had a long week, a seven-day turnaround, we have been able to train hard and train with intensity, which has been really good because it’s going to be needed tomorrow.
on the nature of Kelly’s injury:
She has had issues with her hamstring, has had symptoms and there has been some small injury in the hamstring. She’s still not training with the team, she’s not out on the pitch yet, but she’s making good progress in her rehabilitation.
on if it was a hamstring injury:
Yeah, there was something found, so we classified it as an injury, and obviously she’s not able to train because of the pain and the symptoms, and we hope that she, as soon as possible, is back fit again and fully ready to go and compete for us again.
on why Russo has been playing in the no.10 role:
We look at it holistically. But also I think about Alessia and the role she’s played for us in the 9 and 10 last season, I think she had her best goal-scoring season for Arsenal last season. So she is really good in both positions, and she can finish from both positions, she can absolutely produce goals from both positions. I think, as a team, we have to do everything to get into the right spaces and in good finishing positions to be able to serve all the forwards and all the quality that we have.
on how important it is to get back in the Champions League places:
Yeah of course, that’s in the back of our heads, but for where we are now and what we need right now is to get back to winning ways, and we can only do that with the next game in front of us, so that’s why the next game in front of us is the most important right now.