Renee Slegers reacts to 4-3 victory over Manchester United

Arsenal sealed 2nd spot in the WSL with a breathless 4-3 victory over Manchester United at Emirates Stadium on Saturday. Chloe Kelly gave Arsenal an early lead before Ella Toone’s equaliser. Quick fire second half goals from Mariona, Frida Maanum and Kim Little put the Gunners 4-1 up before conceding to Elisabeth Terland and a Maya Le Tissier penalty. Renee Slegers spoke to the press post-match, the first two questions are from Arseblog News.

On how Arsenal adjusted after United exposed their weakness in behind in the first 20 minutes…
We didn’t make any changes in game after those 15-20 minutes from a defensive perspective. Ahead of the game we were very clear with the details we want to work on to be able to defend space in behind our back line better as a team, I am happy we show a much better version of ourselves. It is often about basics and communication and that got much better. There was a lot of investment from the players over the last couple of days so I am very happy we got rewarded.

On there being too many basketball style games with big score lines this season…
Absolutely, that will be part of the review. It is also the timing of the games, the time in the season that we will review as well. I think the last two there was some timing to it but I am so happy that we come back and I can’t give you too much detail now but there will be a big review post season, but I respect your question, next time we see each other I might have a more detailed answer!

On Chloe Kelly’s contribution since joining on loan in January…
She has made a very positive impact for us, you see it on the pitch in games and we see it in training as well. We are really happy with Chloe as we are with many other players as well. If the whole team is doing well, then individuals within the team can do well and that is not only in games how we set each other up but it’s everything we do in training and meetings and other parts that are part of being a player and a team. We are really happy with her but I want to go back to that everything is a team effort.

On whether Renee would like to see her stay next season…
I think everyone sees that she has been positive for us and I am very happy with her.

On getting momentum ahead of the Barca game…
We wanted to create momentum for ourselves for now and moving forward but we also wanted to create momentum in the game. We knew that United were going to challenge us, Villa and Brighton challenged us with a player for player press and we knew United does that as well with the intensity and quality they can bring. It was a huge challenge for us as a team coming back from the last two games, I am happy we dealt with it much better today. In the game as it is played today, we had really good spells of control and we could have controlled the game even more I think in phases, especially in the attacking half. But when the opposition plays like this, like the Juventus game in the Champions League away, if opposition plays like this, you have to accept that at some point you have to play the game in front of you. I think we did that much better than the last two games, so it is about looking further away, protecting the ball, win duels, second balls, the ball is more in the air and I think we handled those moments better. We played the game that was in front of us, managing momentum in game was at a much higher level as well. We stayed much more task focused, we scored an early goal but then they challenged us with the 1-1. It could have caught us and got us emotional but it didn’t, we stayed very focused on the task, stayed connected and carried on communicating, that was on a really high level today.

On how calm she felt at 4-3…
I didn’t feel calm! I didn’t, but in that moment you have to quickly after look at what we need to do to manage out this game and create momentum for ourselves, or if that is not possible because of their pressure because they have nothing to lose and want to go for the win, then we have to manage this phase of the game. That is where we have really constructive discussions on the sidelines so it is not about just me but our other staff members, we talked about playing to our strengths and I think we had effective messaging for the players coming onto the pitch too, they had all the plans for the different scenarios that we could use and they did that really well.

On a topsy turvy second half…
Of course we want to control the game better, but also you have to play the game that is in front of you, when we play opposition like this there are so many opportunities to take as well when you beat the system. We were effective with that in a block in the second half which gave us the goals as well, so we used those moments. But finding the balance of controlling the game, but again if opposition plays like this ahead of Juventus, we said this is going to be rock n roll football and I think that is what happens against these systems and that is what happens today in spells. But we could have played more of the game in the attacking half, that’s what we could have done a little bit better today.

On the midfield battle today…
We knew that they are a physical team and they don’t mind being direct and supporting underneath and second balls, our midfield did really well and battled for everything. They try to get under your skin but we stayed so task focused and stayed in the present and read things early and that is what was key in this game, they did that really well, as did the rest of the team because all lines of the team need to stay compact so it was not only the midfield but the support from underneath and the support from the highest line as well.

On Russo being joint golden boot winner…
I am happy that she got rewarded for the work she has done day in and day out and that the team got rewarded as well. It is not only the scoring contributions, but she contributes in so many ways on and off the pitch. It’s a privilege to work with these players and Alessia is definitely one of them.

On how this result impacts the mood going into the UWCL Final…
The momentum that we create and finding ways to win was very important today but we also understand that Barcelona is going to be a totally different game. We understand that they have a totally different style of play so they will challenge us in different ways, but seeing and getting on the score sheet and assuring ourselves we are very capable of scoring goals, that is something we confirmed today again. Barcelona will ask us different questions and we will prepare for that.

On how she feels going into a UWCL Final…
All my energy went into this game because it was crucial for us after the last two games, so I haven’t been thinking about it too much. But of course, I am very proud that we put ourselves into this position. There are not many players or people around sport who can say they have been in a Champions League Final, it is the ultimate for every single player and staff member. We are very proud and I am very proud as well so I am going to enjoy it and we are going to show a lot of respect because Barcelona is a great footballing team, so we are humble but also we are not there just to participate, we will go there to win.

1.Zinsberger; 2.Fox (5.L.Codina 90+6), 6.Williamson, 7.Catley, 11.McCabe (3.Wubben-Moy ‘88); 10.Little(c), 8.Mariona (25.Blackstenius ‘88); 18.Kelly (9.Mead ‘71), 12.L.Maanum (13.Walti ‘71), 19.Foord; 23.Russo

Unused: 21.Pelova, 22.Nighswonger, 32.Cooney-Cross, 40.Williams

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