Slegers seeks to find scoring edge again after Palace draw
LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 13: Renee Slegers, Head Coach of Arsenal talks with her team in a huddle after the Barclays Women's Super League 2026/27 match between Arsenal FC and Crystal Palace FC at Emirates Stadium on September 13, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Renee Slegers spoke about Arsenal taking their chances in the final third.
The Gunners dominated the ball against Crystal Palace and took 74 touches in the box of their opposition, but they could not break the deadlock at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
·‘We know we can finish, score goals’
The team can go 20 games unbeaten in the Women’s Super League if they avoid a defeat against Manchester United this weekend, but Slegers wants the team to turn more draws into victories.
“It’s very positive that we’re hard to beat and that’s what we feel about ourselves, but also with some recency bias as well of the last game against Crystal Palace where we weren’t able to score that goal, and didn’t get the win. It’s double, of course we’re proud, but at the same time there are some draws in there like the last one against Palace.
“When I put that with some of the draws we had last year, it’s different for me, if I look at the dominance in the game and expected chances and goals, amount of shots, it’s much higher than what we had last year and we’re on top of things. It is different, but it’s a draw again.
“You have to get everyone grounded, and that’s no different now. But what’s important for us is we know we can finish, score goals, we know we have a lot of scorers in the squad with a lot of quality.
“It is really important players know that and they feel our trust with that. It’s also about the tactical plan, tweaking small things, and hopefully that makes it easier to create more clear-cut chances.”
·‘Baum is in a great place’
Summer signing Lisa Baum could play a big part in that development. She scored on opening matchday against Brighton and troubled Teyah Goldie at the start of the second half against the Eagles last weekend. Slowly but surely, she will be trusted to take on more responsibility.
“[Baum] will be able to play 90 minutes, if we look at the wide forward position in the way we play, it’s one of the most demanding positions where there’s a lot of sprinting and high-speed running involved. We have a squad with different qualities, so we can make changes based on different tactical, technical or physical reasons.
“But she started against Brighton and played around 60 minutes, 75 against Crystal Palace , she’s in a great place, can still improve her repeatability, but she was a really good player for us on the pitch against Crystal Palace .”