Arsenal interim manager Renee Slegers revealed that she was shocked when she heard that head coach Jonas Eidevall had stepped down from his role at the club on Tuesday. (More Football News)
Slegers has been the assistant coach with the Gunners since September 2023, having previously taken over from Eidevall as head coach at Rosengard in Sweden.
After following him to north London, she will once again step into his role - albeit on a temporary basis - but she made it clear that it was a surprise to find that out, and has sympathy for him.
“I spoke to him yesterday afternoon and was shocked by the news,” she said in her first press conference in her new role ahead of their Champions League match at home to Valeranga on Wednesday.
“I was very sad because he has been a good leader for the staff and I worked with him before in Sweden and we worked really well together. I am very sad that it got to this point.”
Eidevall’s departure came after a poor start to the 2024-25 season, with Arsenal sixth in the WSL table having won just one of their opening four matches.
They were also beaten 5-2 by Bayern Munich in their opening Champions League game of the campaign.
But despite their sticky start, Slegers was adamant that it should not define Eidevall’s three-year stint at the club.
"I feel a lot of respect for him, he has been very resilient for a long time,” she said. “He has been working incredibly hard for a long time so all I feel is respect for him."
On taking over the job itself, the interim head coach said that she was happy to do it, but drew more attention to the games ahead than her chances of getting it full-time.
"When I got the question yesterday I felt that if this is how we need to go forward then I am happy to do it,” she said.
“I care about the team, I care about the players. I have been here for a year now and it’s a massive club, so I am happy to help.
"Right now I just need to focus on these next two games which are very important for us. The future, I am not so concerned about right now."
