Managing momentum shifts important for Arsenal against Chelsea says Slegers

Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers says that managing shifts in momentum will be hugely important when her side face Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium this evening.

The Gunners host The Blues in the first leg of their UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final tie.

When commenting on opponents Chelsea in the pre-match press conference, Slegers highlighted The Blues’ strong moments in games and said that her side must be prepared to handle momentum shifts well.

“Chelsea’s games are strong in certain phases, certain periods of the game and we have to be ready for that,” Slegers said. “There will be momentum shifts, phases where we’re strong and phases where they will be and I think it’s about who manages those moments in the best way. We’re definitely preparing for a very strong Chelsea to come out.”

After going a full league campaign unbeaten last season, Chelsea have found this term more challenging. Slegers does not want to focus on the South West Londoners’ poor results or tough moments, she knows The Blues are always dangerous.

She said “I think all teams go through different phases and it’s much easier said than done to just be unbeaten and be at your highest level constantly across seasons. If you look at Chelsea and what they’ve been doing, I think they’ve been excellent at doing that for a very long time.

“All teams go through phases. If I look at their team and their squad, they have a lot of quality, so we’re very prepared to play against a very good team at the Emirates.”

Arsenal have an impressive record at the Emirates Stadium under Slegers and she is pleased to be kicking-off the UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final tie on home soil.

She said “We love to play at the Emirates, of course. It’s a special stadium, it’s a special atmosphere, so many fans. We want to bring energy with the way we play and we know that the fans are always bringing us energy as well.

“We look forward to this occasion and it’s part of the draw that we will play at home first. I think with the last game we played at the Emirates, in the sun, early [in the] day, now under the lights, we love to be at Emirates, so I think it’s a good start for us in these two legs.”

Arsenal’s UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter-final, first leg tie against Chelsea kicks-off at 8pm. Tickets remain on-sale and can be purchased by clicking here.

About The Author

Daniel Pentland

I am the editor and owner of the WSL Full-Time brand which I launched in 2018.

I am an accredited journalist with the FWA, SJA and AIPS. I have reported from various levels of men’s and women’s elite football since 2016.