Hello, Arsenal Women aficionados!
I know it’s been a very long time but what I time to get back writing the Arsenal Women Journal!
After the most depressing of times, with a head coach leaving, the team drifting away form the title challenge and an overall write-it-off-already-and-plan-for-2026 feeling, the four-nil thumping of Juventus at theirs is so refreshing.
Despite the five-nil win against Brighton in the league, I wasn’t overly confident going into this game, but the team showed great character, organization and managed to keep taking their chances with conviction and determination.
Winning in Turin was always the sine qua non condition to qualify for the knockout phase of the UWCL and the way we imposed ourselves confirmed that the healing process is well underway. Are all our problems solved? Absolutely no, as we remain vulnerable to balls over the top and the sample is simply too small to make up our minds, but no one can argue that these players are finally having fun again.
This is not a dig to Jonas Eidevall in any measure, but the change in the mood has been evident in the past few weeks – and performances have improved through that.
JONAS’ RENÉE’S WORDS
Anyone following the club closely already noticed how much the Dutch gives credits to her players, her staff and basically everyone but herself. In Turin, after the final whistle, she promptly lauded her team’s performances on the pitch, choosing her words very carefully:
“We have four different goalscorers and the players up top are performing really well, but I don’t want to take out the goalkeeper, our back four and our two sixes as well. We sometimes forget to highlight because the players up top are scoring the goals, but I think the goalkeepers and the back four – they have been doing really well now over time. I think the spaces Wally and Kim covered today in midfield – they’ve been brilliant.
“So I think the whole team today deserves credit, including the game-changers coming on tonight.”
These words echoed what she said after the home win against Brighton and what she said at every press conference since she replaced Jonas Eidevall, which boosted the players’ self-confidence and resulted in more rounded, more assertive performances on the pitch.
I don’t know what the strategy is upstairs and, frankly speaking, I am not sure there is one, but we have a very popular figure already at the helm, who is proving to be a very good, prepared coach, so I wonder if we’re giving serious thought about appointing her for good.
These players need a big moral boost and a coach able to lift them, encourage them, nurture them more than anything else, all things Renée Slegers is doing without much fuss
LESSON LEARNED
Juventus put a lot of energy in this game, making it virtually a 1v1 across the whole pitch, and we responded very well, putting to bed any speculation about the character of our players. Sure, we want to play intricated, sophisticated football, but we can definitely take on an aggressive, physical opponent and come out on top.
We had to suffer in the first fifteen minutes or so and we did; we rode the storm when necessary but never lost our composure and structure; we had to wait patiently for the pressing triggers to show and we did, but once we got a chance to break forward we did in a very efficient manner, exposing all the weaknesses of Juventus tactical approach.
There is a sense of belief and calmness about these players, but the most impressive trait of this all-important away win against Juventus was the willingness to take players with bravery and purpose.
I don’t know if the players feel liberated since the change in the dugout, but all I see is freedom of expression in the final third, brave choice across the pitch, fierceness in the duels and a real ruthlessness when shooting.
NEXT’S UP
A big North London Derby awaits our players in their quest to recover from their horrible start of the domestic season, and while Chelsea (+6 with a game in hand) and Manchester City (+7) look already out of reach, we need to ensure a top-3 finish and out ourselves in the best possible position to pounce on any (very unlikely) slip up from both Chelsea and Manchester City.
Getting another convincing win in an important fixture would represent another big step in our path to full healing, so let’s hope our good form continues at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, on Saturday. After that – and only after that – we can start thinking about the reverse fixture against Juventus, at the Emirates Stadium.
A win could mean having a foot in the knockout phase already, which would represent a fantastic achievement for the coach and the team.
That’s it for today, it feels nice to be back writing about our wonderful team. A long-read about the turmoil that resulted in Jonas Eidevall resigning will drop soon, then we will be back to standard service with an Arsenal Women Journal episode every week.
Speak to you soon!
Italian living in Switzerland, Gooner since mid-nineties, when the Gunners defeated my hometown team, in Copenhagen. I started my own blog and podcast (www.clockenditalia.com) after after some experiences with Italian websites and football magazines. Covering Arsenal Women with the occasional rant about the boys.
Good to see you back Andrea.
Great win in Italy.
No surprise the players are relating to Renee, female, empathetic, tactically astute, and still young enough to understand the pressures on the players to perform at the highest level, and help alleviate the stress that comes with it.
Football is a pretty simple game when the players all look forward to going to training and playing, and you can see the change in them since Renee took over.
I look forward to your upcoming piece on Jonas and the turmoil surrounding his departure.
I have my own thoughts on that, so will be interesting to read yours.
Thank you Clive! I hope to have my long read available for during the international break – in the meanwhile watch out for the episode about our NLD win 😉