_Arsenal were 1-0 winners at home to Everton in the WSL on Wednesday evening thanks to a 93rd minute winner from Stina Blackstenius. A draw on the final day at Anfield guarantees Arsenal second place. Renee Slegers spoke to the press post-match, the first three questions are from Arseblog News._
**On the relief of a late win…**
A lot of relief, I think, through everyone’s bodies and minds, but also a lot of joy because, of course, we were here to get the three points, which is very important for us on the table and setting ourselves up for next season. But also what it means to the individuals that are going to leave us to play their last game at the Emirates, winning the game. So that was what was going through my head. So, yeah, so in so many ways, that goal meant so much for us.
**On saying goodbye to so many players after the game…**
It’s been hard because these emotions have been there since it’s been announced. I think, in the team, in the individuals and of course, also with the staff, because there’s the staff here that have been working very closely to these players, and they’ve created connections, and so that’s been there all the time. Then at the same time, you have to keep on focussing on the task, on the football, the work we have to do. But those things have been there simultaneously and they’ve lived there in every one of us simultaneously.
I think everyone’s done a great job with that. When you see that how that was received tonight by the by the fans and everyone and what it does to staff members, to other players, the impact that these players that are going to leave us, the impact that they’ve had on the people here, but also the impact they’ve had on football and how we’ve developed the football and how the club has grown so much in the time they’ve been here. They’ve done so much and I think we also see that and we feel that and they hopefully do as well. It’s hard because we are also still in the moment of in season and we have to win games, but it was a lovely moment for the players.
**On Russo being named captain…**
Kim and Leah are our captains, so now we have three supporting captains in the captain’s group with Lotte, Steph and Alessia. Kim and Leah weren’t starting tonight. Steph was not available. Lotte and Less were the captains on the pitch, and I had a chat with them yesterday and I said it was a good moment for Alessia to wear the armband, because it’s all shared responsibility. It’s just formality, but also the knowledge, the way she’s grown and how she’s been stepping up for the team. So it was a nice moment for Alessia.
**On negotiating a tough schedule…**
I’m very impressed because I think if you look at the turnaround, we’ve had, it’s been extreme. I think we had Brighton to Villa the shortest so far in the season and that in the middle of other short turnaround. So it’s been really, really intense for the players. We are travelling as well and then of course the emotions of this, the players that are going to leave us at the end of season, the setbacks we had to deal with as well in the middle of this block, so that was that, of course, takes mental and emotional energy as well. So with all that, what we’re going through as a team and still getting this win over the line because it wasn’t easy for us tonight.
I think the shots weren’t going in. We didn’t create as much as we wanted to, probably, but also those opportunities we created hit the crossbar and was really close. So we had to stay patient and we had to be resilient in the game and I think with the schedule that we have in the short turn around, we needed freshness. So, of course, there’s some fatigue, which is natural if you look at the schedule that we’ve had. I think both are two out of five game changers are directly involved in the goal. So that’s really what we needed, that energy, but it’s a great team performance again.
**On drawing a 25,000 crowd again on a Wednesday evening…**
They travel everywhere with us in Europe and England and they invest a lot of time, energy and also money and supporting us. So we’re so grateful that we have the fans and they make it more meaningful for us, the football that we play, when we win, to be able to share that, shared experiences, mean more. They’ve been so important for us. And I think like today, you could see it on the pitch. We were stacking a couple of corners there at the end and the crowd got us going and they drove us forward and made sure that we kept on believing that the goal was going to come. So they are such a big part of the club and of us as a team- they make an impact.
28.Borbe; 2.Fox (31.Holmberg ‘63), 3.Wubben-Moy, 5.L.Codina (6.Williamson 90+2), 11.McCabe; 21.Pelova, 8.Mariona; 9.Mead (9.Mead ‘63), 12.L.Maanum (25.Blackstenius ‘76), 15.Smith (18.Kelly ‘76); 23.Russo(c)
Subs: 10.Little, 13.Votikova, 14.van Domselaar, 24.Hinds