The Arsenal women have appointed Renee Slegers as their permanent head coach.
Slegers, who was given the job on an interim basis following the resignation of Jonas Eidevall in October, has successfully turned the tide of Arsenal's season, with an unbeaten run of ten wins and one draw in all competitions, with 31 goals and only five goals. admitted at that time.
But beyond the results, 35-year-old Slegers has also instilled a sense of belief in her squad, as evidenced by their improved individual performances.
Alessia Russo is at her best when it comes to goals, having scored 10 of her 11 WSL goals under Slegers this season, while Leah Williamson is also back on form – both promising signs for Lionesses Euros' title defense this summer.
“I am so excited to continue our journey together,” said Renee. “It is a tremendous honor to represent this club as head coach and I have so much belief in what we can all achieve together.
'Over the last few months I have felt such a powerful sense of collective ownership and responsibility from our players and staff – that has been our strength and I know we will ensure we encourage and nurture this feeling as we all move forward.
“It has meant a lot to me to feel the closeness and passion of our supporters during this process, and I would like to thank you all for that. We want to deliver something beautiful that is inspiring and leads to winning trophies. We all play a big role in achieving that.'
In Slegers' last match as interim manager in December, Arsenal defeated Bayern Munich 3–2 in an impressive display at Meadow Park to finish top of the group and qualify for the knockout stages.
This turnaround came after Arsenal started the season with just one win in their first four WSL matches, alongside a heavy 5–2 defeat to Bayern in their opening Champions League match under Eidevall.
Some fans took P45s to his final matches and a 'Jonas Out' graffiti appeared near the Emirates Stadium.
Eidevall – who was appointed head coach of NWSL club San Diego Wave last week – recently told Swedish newspaper Sportbladet that the departure of fan favorite and all-time WSL top scorer Vivienne Miedema to Manchester City caused his relationship with the fans to deteriorate. it was 'like a cloud hanging over us'.
In addition to criticism from the fans, it is also understood that Eidevall had lost the dressing room.
Slegers – who joined Eidevall's coaching team after a two-year spell in charge of FC Rosengard in September 2023 – was named WSL manager of the month for December.
The Dutch-born Slegers won consecutive Swedish titles with Rosengard in 2021 and 2022.
Slegers also has experience of playing for Arsenal, having spent time in the Gunners' youth academy between 2006 and 2007.
Clare Wheatley, Director of Women's Football at Arsenal, said: 'We have carried out a thorough recruitment process aimed at identifying the best candidate to lead our first women's team at this exciting time.
“Renee has been the standout candidate throughout the process and we are pleased to continue our journey with her as our permanent head coach.
“We are confident that she is the best person to lead us forward as we battle for trophies this season and beyond.”
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