Eight months on from their historic UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) victory, Arsenal have been less than convincing. This season they have lost or drawn key games, both in the Women’s Super League (WSL) and Europe, and sit third in the league, eight points off leaders Manchester City, while they have to contend with a two-legged playoff against OH Leuven in February to reach the quarterfinals after failing to finish in the top four of the UWCL’s new league phase.
Yet, the Gunners have reasons to be positive — not least the fact that head coach Renee Slegers has just signed a new 3½-year contract. The club view Slegers as the woman to end their seven-year wait for another WSL title and are backing the 36-year-old coach to return them to winning ways.
The former academy player was initially appointed in January 2025, following a spell as interim head coach after former manager Jonas Eidevall left the club in October 2024. From then, Arsenal went on an 11-game unbeaten streak and ended up second in the WSL, their highest finish in three years, before the gamble on the young coach truly paid off in Lisbon when the club lifted the Champions League trophy by beating Barcelona.
Slegers’ contract was set to expire this coming summer and while it was not a question of whether she was the right candidate, the focus was on renewing player contracts first. But now she has committed her future until 2029, the real test will be whether she can turn the side into consistent force that moves them closer to their ambitions.
And, of course, it will be the club’s job to do make the necessary improvements behind the scenes to help her.
A dip in form
There’s no getting away from the fact that Arsenal just haven’t gelled this season as well as they have in the past. Many of the players are suffering the psychological hangover of having had massive success in the summer with the Champions League, while some of their England players had even more with victory at Euro 2025. That can make returning to domestic action quite tricky and there is a mentality issue holding them back.
The club view Chelsea‘s recent domestic success (they’ve won the last seven WSL titles) as being primarily down to having a resilient mentality. It is something that the club took time to establish under former boss Emma Hayes and has led them to a run of domestic dominance. But while Arsenal have resilient players, the team lack an overall mentality to compete with the best.
This season, late collapses — such as surrendering 2-0 first-half lead to eventually lose 3-2 against Bayern Munich in the UWCL league phase in November — and the tendency to settle for draws against top sides like Manchester United and Chelsea, rather than grinding out victories, have reflected this issue. There has been a general lack of adaptability when their gameplan fails to take hold.
But that has been identified by the club as something to be corrected if the team want to be winners, and Slegers’ personality fits the model if she is given time to fix it. Indeed, she’s always eager to keep learning, has an insatiable hunger to win, and is keen to create a dynamic that is ambitious and fresh.
A restructure
To match her goals, Arsenal have restructured the leadership of the women’s department, moving former player and technical services manager Jodie Taylor into a technical director role to bridge the gap between the analysis, technical and recruitment teams.
Taylor will act as a conduit between the three areas, as well as directly working with Slegers on a day-to-day basis, with the head of women’s football, Clare Wheatley, stepping away from this specific duty.
Former manager Eidevall criticized the club for not having a sporting director with whom he could work closely, describing it as a “lonely place,” and that has led to the restructuring to support Slegers over the next three years.
Arsenal wanted to give her at least three summer transfer windows to bring in the right players to fit with her playing style. They like to plan at least two windows ahead and, having initially considered offering her a two-year deal, they wanted to give her time to make her mark.
Transfer backing
Taylor’s role also relieves Slegers of the burden of managing transfers, too — something she does not like getting involved with. She will act as the glue to help improve and streamline transfers ahead of several vital windows for the north London club, as there is likely to be a decent amount of player turnover.
Arsenal have long sought to lower the average age of their squad. At present, six players are aged 30 or over, and they ended last season with eight players in that category. Several of those key starters — such as Katie McCabe, Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord and Beth Mead — are out of contract this summer. Captain Kim Little will be 36 this year, but the club still view the midfielder as one of the most essential cogs in the team.
Sources said that the club have already made some of the decisions on players with expiring contracts. Some of those who will not be offered new deals have been informed; however, with departures dependent on potential incomings, other decisions are likely to hinge on how the upcoming transfer windows unfold.
Yet, key in their decision to build around Slegers, the club view her as a bold and honest communicator who is able to have tough conversations with her players, as well as being a highly emotionally intelligent and self-aware person.
Arsenal will also need to be patient in the window. There is only a small pool of elite talent in the women’s game, an even smaller pool when you consider age profile, style of play and positions.
Sweden right back Smilla Holmberg, who joined from Swedish side Hammarby, was their priority target for this window and they snapped her up earlier this week. But they are consistently monitoring other options, with preparations already underway for what could be a big summer.
A third of the squad are out of contract — though this is not unusual with two-to-three-year contracts the norm in women’s football — so some key decisions will need to be made.
The future
Ultimately, it will be Arsenal’s responsibility to fully back Slegers’ vision and ambitions through decisive action in the transfer market and long-term planning if the club are to return to winning ways.
Without clear alignment between the manager’s ideas and the club’s strategy, closing the domestic gap on Chelsea (and now Manchester City) will remain an uphill task. Progress will surely depend on Arsenal providing Slegers with the tools, stability and support required to re-establish themselves as genuine title contenders.
The Gunners have Manchester United (twice), Chelsea and Manchester City in their next six games across three different competitions, before the UWCL playoff in February. The next month of games will be key for their hopes, but Slegers’ new contract should give the players a morale boost that can help.
