Alessia Russo agreed on a new long-term deal with **Arsenal**last week to commit her future to the club.
For her, there is "no other place I'd want to be" as she reflected on a great year of achievements.
‘She’s never satisfied’
Russo revealed that there was not a lot of thinking needed to nail down her future in North London.
*“From the moment I've stepped foot at Arsenal, it's been something that I've loved every minute of it. I love the team, I love the staff, I love everything about the club. So it was a very easy decision.”*
The forward bailed on a contract renewal with the Red Devils in 2023, walking away as a free agent after the club turned down two world record bids from Arsenal. A repeat was never on the cards here.
“It's always tough when you make a decision with within your career because there's so much to consider. But when I sat down and thought about this decision, it was really easy and really simple.
*“My goals fully aligned with Arsenal. There's nowhere I'd want to be, no other place I'd want to be.”*
The arrival of Renee Slegers in October last year saw her form fly onwards and upwards in front of the goal. The 26-year-old scored seven times across the first seven matches that the head coach oversaw in the WSL and she has enjoyed working with the Dutchwoman behind the scenes.
“When Renee stepped in, the game and the level had to be lifted. It was a tough start last season. She came in and she made a few tweaks and got us firing.
”I think her standards as a manager is something that I really like as a player, she is really honest and she's very demanding at the same time. She wants to push you and she's never satisfied and that aligns with how I feel about myself and my career.”
At club level, the crowning glory of the last campaign was the Champions League. Russo scored against Real Madrid and **Lyon**on the way to the final in Lisbon, where the Gunners got a shocking 1-0 victory in the final against Barcelona. It is a moment the 26-year-old looks back on with pride.
*“I remember feeling really calm. I think that we knew what we wanted to do. We knew that we believed in the game plan. We believed in what we wanted to go and do against Barcelona. I think that everyone felt in a good place. Everyone was on the same page and wanting the same goal.”*
With England, Russo won a second Euros title in three years, and she became a champion of Europe twice over in the most decorated year of her career. Now, she firmly believes that the sky is the limit.
“I want to keep learning and I feel like this is the perfect place to do that. The level of players that we have the standard of training, the demands of training as well from the staff is high.
“I want to keep progressing as a player, but also we want to carry on winning trophies. I think after last season we felt that we can perform on the highest level and now we want to do that consistently over the season.”