Renée Slegers was back in front of the media for her pre-FC Twente press conference on Monday.
Our head coach provided the latest team news, looked ahead to Tuesday's UEFA Champions League match at Meadow Park and more.
Here's everything she had to say on the following subjects...
**on Leah Williamson’s involvement in the squad on Saturday:**
**RS:** Against Liverpool it was good to get her back into routines and also good to have her around. She is doing well, did the full session today again and she's available for a couple of minutes tomorrow. She won’t be starting tomorrow but she’ll be in the squad.
**on how much she’s been missed:**
**RS:** Yeah, no, fantastic. Of course, unfortunate for her to sustain that injury in the Euros and she had to work hard to come back from it but she's in a really good place. Like I just said, she's been spending a lot of time on the pitch. The time within the international break maybe extended that time a little bit because there was no time to, or no opportunity to train in big groups and 11v11 in more chaotic moments. But she's very ready and we will be very happy to have her back of course. But the players that have been playing have been doing really well.
**on how good it is to have Kim Little back:**
**RS:** Yeah, Kim is a lead by example type of leader so everything she does is 100%. She's very professional and all her actions on and off the pitch are to the maximum of what she can bring and she's done that over time consistently. It's really impressive and of course we're happy to have her back on the pitch as well.
**on if she’s ready to start:**
**RS:** Yeah, we'll see, we'll have to be really smart. It's a small block time-wise with a lot of games. We played Liverpool of course and then we have four games left so we have to be really smart with how we use Kim. It was a loading injury, the calf, so we have to be smart. We'll see tomorrow how many minutes she'll play.
**on what we’ve been lacking recently and what she wants to see more of:**
**RS:** I think there's a couple of games at the start of the season where for us it's about moments and managing scenarios. I think that was a key thing last block as well. We played five challenging games against high-level opposition where it's about moments. So if you look at Leicester - convincing win, Chelsea - we could have and should have won that game with the way we dominated at home at the Emirates. Bayern, we were leading 2-0 at half-time and then it's about how do we manage things when opposition is forcing and chasing something. Then I think your momentum going into the north London derby is different but then we finished the block with a good win against Real Madrid and started the block well. Even though there were some moments in the first half against Liverpool, but overall a good performance and convinced that we should have won that game. We waited until the 87th minute, I think it was, but created enough to win that game. So happy with the start of the block and we look forward to playing tomorrow in the Champions League.
**on if confidence is lower at the moment than it would normally be:**
**RS:** I think it's a word that we don't really talk about, confidence, because we believe that with your actions you can create momentum. But of course when you look at the second half of last season, how easy things were for us and we were in a flow state and we did score a lot of goals, then if that's different or it's harder, then of course you have to work even harder and you have to work from a psychological perspective as well to make sure that everyone feels good and plays with belief and belief in what we're doing. But I think that's been excellent from the squad.
**on what changes she would like to see in football:**
**RS:** I'm briefed by you! No, I think I want the sport to be positive. I want the game to be positive. It means so much to so many people, so can we keep it positive? There's many things to it, and I think what we can do within our environment is to keep a high perspective on what we do on a daily basis, the privilege of what we're doing on a daily basis, and what we mean to so many people, and connect back to that. And then I think positivity from the outside, because I think it's natural for us human beings. I think it comes from a growth mindset about being critical of things to make things better. But I think keep on seeing the good in everything, and there's so many good things with sports in society. It's so important. I think it's one of the basic elements in the world, if you ask me, and let's keep it positive.
**on the difficult of three of the next four games being away:**
**RS:** You know that across the season, about 50% of the games you play at home and 50% of the games you play away. So that's just reality and the rules of the game. Yeah, so we are set on Twente tomorrow, and we know that's at home and we know that's at Meadow Park. We look forward to it. It's a nice, intimate setting, close to the fans. So we will do everything to bring energy and the fans who mean the world to us when we play at home. So we look forward to the game tomorrow.
**on her knowledge of Twente:**
**RS:** Well, I know them from the perspective of I was there at the start of the Eredivisie. I was a player back then, and Twente was one of the teams that pioneered and was one of the first teams to start the league. So they've done so much for the league in the Netherlands and I'm really impressed that they're still doing that and still pushing. So, yeah, they've meant a lot in the history of women's football in the Netherlands and they keep on going. So, of course, I've been watching their games, the relevant games, in preparation of our game tomorrow. Yeah, so they're a good team. They're a young team, high Dutch representation, and I think with these teams, they're top of the table in the Netherlands. They know how to play the game differently as well against European opposition. So it looks like they have a plan for different scenarios. And what I've learned, if I remember it right, playing in the Netherlands, there's always a lot of passion and aggression and high belief in what you're doing and I'm sure they will bring that tomorrow.
**on their Champions League campaign so far:**
**RS:** Yeah, like I just said, I think they are capable of playing the game in different ways. They play it a certain way in the league at home in the Netherlands and then they have really strong game plans for high-level European opposition. I think you saw that in their game against Chelsea. Benfica, Leuven, it's all very close games. So, yeah, we, of course, are going to come out with the high belief in ourselves because we know we're a really good team. But we're also respectful of what they do and like I just said, I think they will come out with the belief in themselves. They also need the points. I think they have quite an aggressive and passionate mindset in general in the Netherlands and that's what they're going to come out with. Yeah, we look forward to the game. But they've done an impressive run, I think, so far in the season.
**on going back to Meadow Park:**
**RS:** Yeah, good. I think, like me personally, I like playing at Meadow Park. We love the Emirates, of course, because we can share the football with so many people. The Emirates facilities are great. It's high performance. What we like about Meadow Park, it's a piece of history for Arsenal Women as well. The team has been playing there since, I don't know exactly what year, 1987? So it's a piece of history and we love coming there. Like I just said, we feel really close and connected with the fans and we love going towards North Bank. I personally always look forward to games at Meadow Park.
**on difference between how Dutch teams and English teams play in Europe:**
**RS:** It's not easy for me to follow the Eredivisie. I'm not in the Netherlands much myself, of course, so I can't watch the matches live. And it's not always accessible on our platforms either. So I haven't seen much of the Eredivisie in recent years. But I've been there myself, and I've seen some. I follow the Dutch national team and the players who are coming through. I have the perspective of the WSL here. And that's really at a very high level. And if I look compared to... Because this is my third season here, If I compare it to the first two seasons, I find this third season even more competitive. And I think that really separates the WSL from the rest. That it's really highly competitive. So what you see... All the matches are difficult. And challenging. And that's fantastic for the women's game, that it continues to grow. But the way they invest here and the size of the staff in all the teams... If you look at the quality of the squads and all the competitive games, and very physical too, then I really think that looks different in many other leagues in Europe. And that includes the Eredivisie.
**on if it’s still special to play against a Dutch team:**
**RS:** Yes, definitely. I'm very focused on the day-to-day. So I'm just preparing for the next opponent. But if I just think for a moment... Who are we going to play against? That's the Netherlands. And as I just mentioned, that's FC Twente, who started the Eredivisie in the Netherlands. And I was part of that. So it's a very special moment to play against and coach against Dutch team. But the Twente players are all \[younger\]. I'm 36 now, so I haven't played with anyone there! I don't know the coach well either. But I think there's... It seems like really good things are happening there at Twente. No, but it's definitely special for me to play against a Dutch team.
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