Every word of Renée and Steph's pre-Bayern presser

Ahead of our final fixture of 2024, Renée Slegers has held her pre-Bayern Munich press conference.

Our interim head coach was joined by Steph Catley to discuss our impressive run of form, team availability and looking to end the year on a high.

Here is everything they had to say:

Renée on team availability…

Same availability as against Liverpool.

Renée on the importance of finishing top of our group…

Well, most importantly, it was to qualify for the quarter-finals. We did that, but now we said, we go and try and win the game and win the group. Like you said, it's important for the momentum of the team at the moment.

Renée on developments around the permanent head coach role…

In general, I have very good communication with the club and they are working on it behind the scenes. So there's nothing to share here.

Steph on what Renée has brought to the player group…

I think she's come in under really difficult circumstances and really steadied the ship. She's given a lot of individual players a lot of confidence to play how they want to play and to go out and do their thing. And [she’s given] the group as well, a lot of confidence. She brings a lot of positive energy and is a really good communicator. That's just been really effective way to manage the group. I think you can see that in the results.

Steph on clarity on the head coach role…

As a playing group, honestly, we're just focusing on game by game. You know, Renée’s our leader at the moment, and that's the position she's in, and she's done an incredible job. I think she's also done a really good job of just focusing on the football and taking it one game at a time. So that's the way the group's working as well. We're just following her lead and focusing on whoever is our next challenge.

Renée on whether she’s keen to continue what she’s started…

Well, I'm desperate for the team to be performing well and keep on performing well. I think I've said it many times, but I want to bring it back to the players. I think there's been a shift in mindset, and I think they've been stepping up in many parts of what it means to be a footballer. On the pitch, off the pitch, as a group, as individuals. 

So I think I want to bring it back to them, and they will stay together as a group, and they will have to keep on pushing this and in whatever way or shape I can help, I'll be there to support. I've done it in my role previously, and I want to keep on being a part of this team.

Renée on taking over this team…

There was such a great foundation already. I want to give credit to Jonas again. Obviously, I worked with Jonas, and I think Jonas has built something really strong here at Arsenal, with the way the squad was built and the foundations of the game model and how we work as a tech staff and a wider staff. So there was so much that was already very good in a very good place.

Also, if you see how we performed in games, statistically, we outperformed our opposition in all the games with Jonas as well. So I think there was so much that was already so good, we just tried to put emphasis on small things. But the main thing that's changed is how the players have been taking ownership of their jobs.

Renée on how far the team has come since the last Bayern fixture…

Yeah, definitely. From a results perspective, we're very happy with the results. But like I said, performances were already good. If you look at it statistically and objectively, we had good performances in place. We built momentum and I think we did that well in the game against Valerenga and moving onwards. I think it's always very strong if you have positive things going on, to keep on building on those positives, and you can keep on building momentum. 

But then it's always staying sharp as well, because it's not just positive and not just momentum. We have to stay sharp on what we need to emphasise and what details we need in place and work really hard. And I think that's what the girls have been doing.

Steph on whether the player group would like Renée to stay…

That's not up to us, unfortunately. But yeah, as a team, obviously, we're very happy right now. We're getting results. There's a good vibe around the team. And yeah, I've not been knocking on doors, but maybe Kim can do that. Obviously, the results are important, but the way that we're playing football and the way that we're building as a team is also really important. So I think game by game, we're getting better, and that's just what we're focusing on right now.

Renée on playing at Meadow Park tomorrow…

We're gonna play at Boreham Wood tomorrow and I think what's positive about Boreham Wood is that we're so close to the fans. It's a very intimate place to be. So I think we get that extra connection. We're very close to each other. So that's positive for tomorrow from a facilities perspective. 

Obviously, the Emirates has all the space. There's room for everything, there's technology, and that's different than Boreham Wood, but we've been doing that for such a long time, and we have a good process in place for tomorrow as well.

Steph on playing at Meadow Park tomorrow…

Like Renee said, that's the cards we’ve been dealt, and that's where we're playing tomorrow, and it's a massive game for us. And we've played there for a long time. We're very good at playing in that field. We know it very, very well, so it is a home ground advantage for us, and we feel confident about that. And like Renee said, the crowd there, they always show up in so many numbers, and it might not be as many, but they're just as passionate, just as loud, they're obviously very, very close to us on the field. So, all of that is very helpful.

Renée on Kim Little’s return to play...

We've just had to manage Kim. She happened to be back in training before Liverpool, which was very positive. But we also knew there were only a couple of days before Liverpool following two games with tight turnarounds, so we are just building her back with minutes. So, we haven't been planning the whole block for Kim to play against Bayern. She was just away, and we had to build her back into availability. 

Renée on Katie McCabe’s versatiliity and recent form.. 

She's a very intelligent player, and I think that the whole squad are very intelligent. That's why we need structure in all phases of the game, but we also give them the freedom to fill positions or to combine with each other, as long as a couple of things are always in place. And I think Katie McCabe is a very good example of that. She's very intelligent. She has loads of experience. She understands the game really well. She's a very good communicator, so she gets that freedom on the pitch, but as do the other girls as well. 

Steph on tomorrow’s game being a new opportunity to comeback stronger against Bayern after the last leg…

I think that game was a big wake up call for us. We’re a proud team. We want to score goals, but we also want to keep clean sheets. That's something we want to do all the time. So that was way too many goals conceded, and just a poor performance for us in general. So, it does give us a good opportunity now that we've worked on the back of a lot of games here in a row now. With keeping clean sheets, we've tightened a lot of things, and we're in a good place, and we're feeling confident. 

So, to take on a team like Bayern right now, which is one of the best teams in the world, it's going to be tough, but I feel like we're in a good place right now to take on that game and to get a result, and that is our biggest aim. We want to finish top of the group, so we're going out there to win the game. 

Steph on underloading and overloading of players…

It’s obviously a tough one to manage. I think every individual player manages their body and their load differently. I know for me, I like to keep ticking over, if I have a big chunk of time, then it's not always a good thing, but you can manage the way that you take that time as an individual. In terms of how they do it with the calendar, I've been asked this question before, and I don't know the answer. It's a tough one and I'm glad I'm not in charge of figuring it out, but

I think at the moment, the calendar is very busy for someone like me. I'm traveling back and forth to Australia a lot, so it's a lot of flying, a lot of games, and that does add up on your body. And there's obviously been a lot of talk about the injuries and stuff that have been going on in the women's game at the moment. In terms of managing the calendar, I'm not sure how it works out, but in terms of our breaks, what we've got just needs to be managed by the club. We need advice on how to best handle each individual player and I think that's the most important thing, is just getting it right for the individual.

Renée on finding the right balance between us and the opposition’s threats…

It’s about both, we always look at what we bring and what we need to do, and what we’re good at, and how we’re going to exploit them. We also need to be realistic; we also look at the opposition, what their strengths are, every game is a game, you’re going to go out and compete.

I agree that Pernille Harder is part of their threats, as a team they have certain threats as well – we’ve discussed most of it, we feel comfortable with understanding who Bayern is, what they do, what they have done previously, what they did against us in the away leg, but obviously they can come out and do something different, so we have to be on our toes. I think we feel prepared as a team.

Steph on the change of playing centre back…

Yeah, definitely [on it making her feel differently]. I’ve done it a fair bit in my career when I’ve changed from left-back to centre-back and physically you definitely feel the difference in terms of high-speed metres and the amount of ground you’re covering, but mentally, I think it’s a whole different game. At full-back, the options you’re given are quite limited a lot of the time, so it’s all instinctive, whereas, at centre-back, it’s all about organising, staying connected to everyone and reading the game before everything happens, that’s the challenge. 

Physically, it’s less load for me so in a way I feel fresher going into games and recover quicker, so that’s always a nice thing, but ultimately for me, it’s just whatever role the team needs me to play – I’m ready for any of it. I’m playing full-back frequently for the national team, played wingback, and centre-back, whatever the team needs I’m prepared for it both physically and mentally.

Steph on the feeling going into a big game…

It’s a big game, but playing at a club like Arsenal, these are the moments that you wait for as a footballer in general, these are the big games and moments that you play football for. Personally, I feel ready. As a team, we’re very ready. Mostly, I’m just excited – these are ones you circle on a calendar so I’ve been looking forward to it for a while, especially after how the last one went so we’re all focused, but there’s a lot of excitement there too.

Renée on what tweaks we’re making from our last encounter with Bayern…

We’ve spoken about it this morning as a team, we’re obviously not going to give away the game plan in the press conference! One thing I could highlight is, for example, we concede from set-pieces and that’s something we want to do better tomorrow.

Renee’s feelings ahead of the game…

I’m excited for the game! I think we’ve had so many different challenges as a team. The last two were the cold and surface in Norway and with a very short turnaround, we went to Liverpool, which is always a very hard game as well, another away game. And now, we get to play against Bayern Munich, top of Europe and we see where stand. This is a new challenge that I look forward to.

Renée on third-player runs and the foundation Jonas Eidevall built:

I think, that’s a principle that a lot of teams work with so, we coach it on the pitch. Jonas used it as a principle as well. But going back to the question, I think the foundation he built was really strong and we still pick the fruits from that, so he’s definitely still a part of it. 

Renée on appreciating the role she’s in:

Yes I think so, you work in a lot of directions, you work with players, you work with colleagues, you work upwards, you work externally, so there’s a lot of different things to do it, but from how I have been perceiving it, it’s a very big staff, we have a lot of players, but the togetherness we have in the building at the moment means that we share things so it doesn’t feel heavy for me to be honest, you feel like you’re doing things together. 

I’ve been in head coach roles before where facilities, resources and everything, was very basic and there was very little and I had to carry a lot myself. I think that was almost, in some ways, harder, because everything is on your shoulders and now I feel that we’re really doing it together. Also mentioning the fans: because they’ve been backing us through good and bad times, so I feel it’s a big role, there’s a lot of things to it but it’s enjoyable to be part of Arsenal and working with the players and staff.

Renée on what she has learned about herself:

I learn about myself all the time, in life, also being a parent, for example, I’ve been living away from my country and my family for a long time so I think everything in life is learning. I’ve learned a lot of things these last couple of months. I think, as a leader, I’m more aware of how you can empower other people, and how you can make other people strong. I think that’s definitely been something I’ve learned during these last couple of months. 

Renée on whether she’s enjoyed the role:

Yes, as I said, I’ve been enjoying every minute of working for Arsenal in whatever the role is, I want to help the team move forward and that’s been enjoyable.

Renée on Alessia Russo’s development and versatility:

We know that she came in as a nine but we also know she’s good in a 10 position and now because of a couple of decisions we made and a couple of experiments we did, she can also play on the wing. She did that really well against Valerenga. Depends on what she needs in the game and how we want to get her qualities out. For example, against Valerenga, she was more forward facing, entering the box so could get to different types of finishes. I know Alessia’s here as a nine but we know she can play in different positions.

Steph on the defensive record and consistency

I mean I think it’s down to consistency, but I think, as a whole, our entire squad appreciates the value of a clean sheet, knows how important it is and it’s something we really drive in our standards, when we’re training, when we go out to every game it’s something we remind ourselves of. It’s not only just about the players that are on the field at the moment, I think when you see players coming off the bench, Lotte the other day, coming in, making it a five [at the back], everyone knows their role, everyone knows the standards, the specifics to get a result and make sure we get that clean sheet. I think consistency is one of those things but just knowing your role and knowing how important every aspect of the defending is, even from the front, the way that we press, a clean sheet isn’t just down to the back four or the defenders, it’s from the front, it’s from the strikers that are starting the press so, it’s something that’s going well for us but we’ve got to continue to make that happen.

Renée on the response from the team to Renee coming in as interim manager:

I’m thankful for the support because I was there to support the team, but I also got support back. Internally, we’ve been working very strongly together, we’ve had a very strong togetherness. I’m very thankful for support from different directions. 

Renée on trying to defeat Bayern and end 2024 on a high:

It’s something for the team. We have been doing really well and we know it takes hard work to carry this momentum and we have one more game to play tomorrow, we want to give everything tomorrow and the team wants to go and win that game so it’s all about the team.