Renee Slegers explains why Arsenal fell to shock Women's FA Cup defeat to Liverpool
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Arsenal boss Renee Slegers has reflected on the weekend’s shock FA Cup exit, admitting her side struggled to find any form of rhythm against Liverpool.
The Gunners were understandably firm favourites going into the weekend’s quarter-final clash, having previously brushed Liverpool aside in the WSL earlier in the campaign. However, the Merseyside outfit produced the FA Cup shock of te season with a narrow 1-0 victory at Meadow Park.
After a relatively quiet first half in front of goal, it was Sophie Roman Haug who got the shot away for Liverpool from a clipped ball into the box from Marie Hobinger. The forward’s effort rippled the back of the net off Arsenal goalkeeper Daphne van Domselaar and the hosts then struggled to respond.
“We knew it was going to be a hard game,” Slegers told arsenal.com after the game. “[Liverpool] have a style of play that asks you questions. We felt that we were under pressure a lot in the game.
“For us, the Arsenal way is being good on the ball. That’s very important for us. We just didn’t have the quality that we usually do on the ball.”
Despite enjoying more possession, Arsenal managed just one attempt on target compared to Liverpool’s three. They pushed for an equaliser into the nine minutes of stoppage time, but Slegers felt her side struggled to build any momentum.
“A couple of circumstances and stoppages don’t allow us the rhythm, but that starts with our basics and the quality on the ball,” she added. “That’s definitely what we can control and what we want to do better next time.
“The girls are very disappointed at the moment and they might be tomorrow as well. They wanted so much more. But then we’ll just reset and go again and we’ll have a game again on Friday.”
It’s set to be a significant month for Arsenal with WSL matches against Everton, Liverpool and Crystal Palace to come. It is crucial they keep pushing forward as rivals Manchester City are hot on their heels in the race for Champions League football.
Their hopes of securing silverware haven’t entirely diminished, however, as their quarter-final tie against Real Madrid in the Champions League will also take place. Their opponent is currently five points behind leaders Barcelona in the Liga F table and are one of the up and coming teams in European football, making it a tricky task for Arsenal.
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