Slegers sees Arsenal’s inefficiency as a ‘collective responsibility’
LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 19: Arsenal Women Head Coach Renee Slegers during the Barclays Women's Super League 2026/27 match between Arsenal FC and Manchester United at Emirates Stadium on September 19, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Renee Slegers spoke about another draw for Arsenal as they dropped points to Manchester United.
The hosts would have been expected to bounce back from their 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace in their second successive Women’s Super League match at the Emirates Stadium. They dominated their opposition, with 59% possession and 17 shots— of which seven were on target on the afternoon.
·‘We wanted to be more clinical, we wanted to be ruthless’
However, they went behind to a goal from Julia Zigiotti Olme. Smilla Holmberg levelled in second half stoppage time for the Gunners in a 1-1 stalemate, but their wastefulness was once more costly.
“I think there was domination on the pitch, I think in the first half they spent more time on the ball than we would have wanted, so we got more aggressive in the second half. I think they have very little opportunities. Of course, the chance that they get is a very open chance, which they capitalised on.
“Going into the game we wanted to be more clinical, we wanted to be ruthless with our opportunities in the box, but unfortunately, we couldn't convert the dominance in the final third into goals today.
“From a mentality perspective, what the players did at the end of the game, with the energy and the ideas of the five game changers that come on, that's definitely something we're going to take with us. It gives us belief that we can do things late in the game, but of course we wanted three points today.”
“I think we have our box entries; we have our shots and there’s quite some that go on target. We have to continue to work on being more dangerous in front of goal. It's a collective responsibility.
Renee Slegers, manager of Arsenal, and Selina Cerci of Arsenal at full time during the Women's Super League match between Arsenal and Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium in London, United Kingdom, on September 19, 2026. (Photo by Harvey Murphy/News Images/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Renee Slegers, manager of Arsenal, and Selina Cerci of Arsenal at full time during the Women's Super League match between Arsenal and Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium in London, United Kingdom, on September 19, 2026. (Photo by Harvey Murphy/News Images/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“That's something we do together, of course, because we really believe in the quality of the squad, the qualities of the players. We believe that if those final details are going to be there and things start clicking, we're going to be good.
“Recover now and then a couple of days to work towards Koge. It’s good for us. We're going to be reviewing this performance and take all the learnings so we're effective with our training week.
“Then we look forward to being in front of the fans again because what they did for us today, I said the five game changers, but also the crowd here helping us towards that goal, that was amazing. We really want to pay back to the fans and let's start on Tuesday.”