Arsenal Women’s head coach Renee Slegers has delivered an honest assessment following her side’s 2-1 Champions League defeat to Lyon at Meadow Park on Tuesday night, a game that started with early promise but ended in frustration.
The Gunners opened their European campaign brightly, taking the lead through Alessia Russo in the seventh minute. However, two costly first-half errors allowed Lyon to mount a swift comeback, spearheaded by Melchie Dumornay.
Despite the setback, Slegers remained measured in her post-match reflections, acknowledging both the positives and the challenges her side faced against one of Europe’s most dominant teams.
“I think we had a good start and Lyon are a very, very strong team,” Slegers said. “They have so much physicality and individual strength, but of course there are also weaknesses. But we had a good start.”
Her words captured the duality of Arsenal’s performance, a side capable of competing at the top level but still learning how to sustain their intensity across 90 minutes. Lyon’s relentless pace and fluid movement in attack stretched Arsenal’s backline, forcing Slegers to make tactical adjustments.
“In the first half, the spaces were big and Lyon do that really well, they threaten both in front and in behind the back line,” she explained. “We got a little bit more compact in the second half, and that helped us. The good thing is we have control over what we want to improve, but too many minutes out of the 90 were dictated by Lyon instead of us.”
It was a candid admission, one that underlined Slegers’ demand for her players to seize control rather than react. She praised the team’s efforts to match Lyon’s physicality but also stressed the importance of imposing Arsenal’s own style, built on quick passing and pressing.
“We had to match them with the physicality and tempo they bring, but we also wanted to impose our own game, to be really good with the ball and intense in our pressing,” Slegers said. “We did that at times, but not consistently enough across 90 minutes.”
That inconsistency, Slegers noted, was the difference between victory and defeat. In a competition where every detail counts, she urged her players to focus on perfecting those decisive final moments.
“Everyone’s working really hard to find that final action, that final detail,” she said. “It’s about margins, it always is at the highest level but we believe that if we get one or two things right, everything else will rise with it.”
Despite the disappointment, the Arsenal boss made sure to acknowledge the unwavering support of the fans, whose passion filled Meadow Park even in defeat.
“The supporters are a big driver for us because they come, they invest, and they bring so much energy,” Slegers said. “We definitely want to give that back. You can see them all there after the game, and we want to bring good football and results for them. We’re disappointed tonight, but we’ll work really hard to start bringing it again.”
As Arsenal turns their attention back to domestic action, hosting Brighton & Hove Albion in the Barclays Women’s Super League this weekend, Slegers’ message is clear, use the frustration as fuel. With Benfica awaiting in their next European test, the Gunners will be determined to bounce back stronger and turn lessons learned from Lyon into lasting momentum.
