Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers has confirmed the details of the side’s leadership group, including a co-captain surprise.
Fans were raising their eyebrows last weekend when Catley wore the armband in Arsenal’s clash against Chelsea in the Women’s Super League, despite the fact that known members of the leadership team, Katie McCabe and Lotte Wubben-Moy, were included in the starting eleven.
Ahead of Arsenal’s UEFA Women’s Champions League clash against Bayern Munich in Germany, Slegers confirmed that Catley was added to the leadership team over the summer. The 31-year-old has become a brand new player since Slegers took charge of the side, earning herself a maiden Ballon d’Or nomination following a fantastic campaign in the 2024/25 season.
“Everyone brings something unique, and that’s, I think, the nice thing about having so many different players in a squad, and then also, more specifically, in a captaincy group,” Slegers commented when asked about the reshuffling of the leadership group.
“What Steph does really well is she’s always very composed, calm. She’s role-modelling everything that we want from the players in the squad. She connects really well with other players, with all players in the squad, young, old, any background.
“On the pitch, she’s a great communicator. She’s constantly communicating and instructing. So she has a lot of really good leadership qualities.”
Embed from Getty Images
Kim Little and Leah Williamson ‘two captains’ of Arsenal confirms Renée Slegers
Slegers confirmed that Katie McCabe and Lotte Wubben-Moy make up the rest of the leadership group, and noted that both Kim Little and Leah Williamson now co-captain the side.
“We have two captains, and that’s Kim Little and Leah Williamson,” Slegers confirmed. “Then we have supporting captains, and that’s Steph Catley, Katie McCabe and Lotte Wubben-Moy.
“So those are the players in the captaincy group, and someone will wear the armband, and it’s a formality. But, it’s important role to play, of course, on the pitch. We have so much leadership in the team, so it’s really good to work with this team, and in the end, that’s everyone.
“I think that’s a strength of the team, is everyone is carrying responsibility and everyone needs to be accountable for things, and that’s the culture we want to create. But, of course, someone has to wear the armband, and you have to represent the club in a good way, and I’m so proud that we have so many leaders in the team.”