Renée: “It’s only half-time”

Despite a tough battle on Tuesday night in Madrid, our Gunners fell short in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid. 

Speaking after full-time, head coach Renée Slegers believed that the 2-0 score line wasn’t a true reflection of the match. 

“It was quite an even game. We knew beforehand that it was going to be a battle between two well-organised teams.

“I think Real Madrid got maximum reward for what they created and what their game plan was today, so credit to them.

“I don’t believe in bad luck, so I think it’s about the details that we need to do better. So, what kind of attacks do we create, how do we position without the ball. The season hasn’t been perfect all the way, we have been dealing with things along the way and I think that’s part of sport and that’s what makes great athletes and great teams. Teams that can come back and want to get better. 

“I think performances and results can be a big motivator to try and do things better next time, so there’s definitely a lot of key learnings from this game and we see all the potential opportunities to perform better in the home game.”

Renée already has the return leg front of mind, hoping the home advantage will prove decisive.

“It’s only half-time. It’s 2-0 to Real Madrid at the moment but we’re going to play against them again at the Emirates and we’ll have to believe that we can score two goals with the fans behind us.

“We heard the fans the whole game here as well today, so thanks for that. Thanks for the support and we always know that they will bring us that extra edge, that extra energy when we play at home with all the fans behind us so I’m looking forward to that.”