Renée Slegers said that the camp are "where we want to be" ahead of their match with West Ham.
The squad must handle seven outings in three tournaments before the next pause in play for club duties. The Hammers are the first test on that list and Slegers spoke to the press about her feelings on a critical phase of the campaign that will shape how exciting the end of their season could be.
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It’s important to me to know where they’re at’
Arsenal are back in action after a two week hiatus for the international break. Slegers spoke about how she has been using the time away from the players to get ready for the next block of fixtures.
“I definitely try to watch the games. Unfortunately, most of the games are being played on the same day at the same time so I can’t see everything live, so I pick my games and try to see the rest after.”
“It’s important for me to know where they’re at, so you think about it as a decompression period but it’s not really. It’s just a different period in your work because we choose to do other things, work on our processes in the background. Obviously also a big part of those days is following the players.”
Many members of the squad were on show for their countries. Among them were England and Spain, whose clash in the Nations League left the manager content with competitive action in their legs.
“I watched that game from home. It was a competitive game. I spoke to a couple of the players; they are together in the building today from being opposition teams on Wednesday. Yeah, it was a high-level game, so I'm happy that we have the Nations League as well, so we have competitive games instead of training games for the national teams.”
The USA and Australia also partook in the SheBelieves Cup. Despite the distances that the players trekked, the 36-year-old is confident that her players from those teams will be back in good shape.
“They’re very professional; the Americans and Australians do it almost every international break. They have to go to another continent, and they know how to deal with themselves. We do everything we can to get them back to rhythm so everything we do, these hours that we get is to get them ready and then there’s still decision making, but they’ve done it before. They know how to deal with it.”
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‘This is where we want to be’
The Gunners have hit top gear with their new leader. They enter this fixture following a 5-0 rout of Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby. Having also beaten Man City at the start of the month, Slegers scooped the award of Manager of the Month for the second time in the post.
The Dutchwoman was humble about this honour and she wished to credit the crew around her.
“That award is going from coach to coach, so it doesn't stay. And there were two games in the WSL in February, so it wasn't a big month. It’s the shortest month of the year.”
“But of course, I’m happy with the wins that we got in that month and there's a lot of hard work. I always want to share. Anything we win is shared between people that are working here, so both players and staff, because I think you can't do anything by yourself.”
They are still two points ahead of the Citizens and only three behind Man United. Though the top spot is firmly in the hands of Chelsea, Arsenal's aspirations for silverware are still alive in domestic and continental cup competitions. The team are keen to keep fighting on several fronts for trophies.
“We have a very exciting block, full of opportunities ahead of us, and we're going to try and take those opportunities, and that's within our control. Everything that the others do, we can't control. But we're going to try what we can do in these four games.”
“It’s very exciting. This is where we want to be. We have the FA Cup and the Champions League, where we can make a great step during this block with the Real Madrid games and Liverpool game, and then we're going to try and push everything in the league as well across those four games.”
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‘Everything she does is 100 per cent’
Slegers knows she will call on the services of many players to manage minutes for the next month.
“Across the last couple of blocks, we've used a lot of players and player qualities, and the minutes were spread between players. I can't tell you anything right now. I won't share it here how the plans are for the upcoming block. And I also know that football is unpredictable. Anything can happen.”
“So yeah, you want to plan things, and you have your ideas, but then reality comes and hits you. So, I won't share that with you at the moment. All I say is that we have a great squad with a lot of different qualities, and we're going to try and use the squad to the maximum during this block.”
The competitiveness of the club has also familiarized the squad with such a demanding schedule.
“So now we're going to play seven games in four and a half weeks, which will be intense as well. But we're used to this schedule now, and that's why we have the squad we have. So yeah, we're going to do everything to prepare them, physically, mentally and technically, technically to be able to perform.”
The manager will look to the squad’s stalwarts to lead by example at the business end of the campaign. One is Kim Little, who recently extended her contract at the club for an extra year.
“Kim is a natural role model for many people, not only players but also staff because what she does is she sees all the small details and she understands that all of the little things you do as a professional athlete will contribute to your performance at the weekend. Everything she does is 100 per cent.”
“It’s not only the way she prepares for games; it’s not only the 100 per cent in training, it’s every little detail she wants to get right. It’s also before and after training, from a medical and performance point of view. She’s a high performer and she demands the very best of herself and naturally, because of the way she is as a person, she demands that from everyone around her in a very good and natural way.”
