Arsenal mark Slegers’ head coach promotion with WSL thrashing of Palace
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The huge welcoming cheer from the Arsenal fans crammed into the North Bank terrace at Borehamwood on the introduction of their new head coach, Renée Slegers, over the PA system shortly before kickoff was testament to her job done to date. The interim manager has gone from a relative unknown, as an assistant to Jonas Eidevall with an emphasis on one-on-one work with players, to the popular choice among players and Arsenal faithful alike. “We’ve got super Renée Slegers, she knows exactly what we need,” sang the standing fans in the North Bank and, it seems, she does.
![[Arsenal’s head coach Renée Slegers talks to Katie Reid.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/da04ba125a7ae1e869699980f9dad43ecb4be992/0_61_1912_1147/master/1912.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
For the manager nothing feels different though – a “no” and a smile were all that was given in response to the question. Defeat of bottom-placed Crystal Palace may have been somewhat of a foregone conclusion, but it was an important victory for the home team, one that kickstarts a new era and makes it 11 wins out of 12 unbeaten games since the former Dutch international took over. There are bigger challenges to come but, for now, that is a moot point. You can only deliver results against the team in front of you and that is what the Gunners have done under Slegers, over and over.
It took six minutes for Slegers’ team to make their mark at Borehamwood, Katie McCabe’s corner sidefooted in by England captain Leah Williamson in the middle, her first goal for the Gunners since March 2023. There was some irony in Williamson’s goal, evident in the clear surprise as she celebrated. Just two days prior, when talking about how she manages emotions and connects with supporters, the defender said: “I’m not going to score a goal ,am I? That’s not my way of connecting with fans”. There was more irony in the fact that by full time Williamson could have had four.
