'The next Wiegman' - the story of the Arsenal manager who made history

Renee Slegers had not played oregon managed beyond the radical stages of the Women's Champions League earlier taking complaint of Arsenal this season.

Just 4 months aft being named the Gunners' caput manager connected a imperishable basis, the 36-year-old has led the Gunners to Champions League glory for the archetypal clip successful 18 years.

But however did the Dutchwoman - billed arsenic the "next Sarina Wiegman" - emergence up the ranks to go 1 of Europe's champion young coaches?

Here's the communicative of Slegers - the player, the coach, and the idiosyncratic down it all.

Slegers' narration with Arsenal goes mode back, having joined the club's academy astatine the property of 17 successful 2006.

When she near the nine the pursuing year, having made 1 elder appearance, Arsenal were freshly-crowned winners of the Champions League - oregon Uefa Cup arsenic it was past known - nether Akers.

Little did Slegers cognize that conscionable 9 years aboriginal her ain playing vocation would beryllium over, and that successful different 9 years she would beryllium backmost successful northbound London again - guiding Arsenal to a 2nd European trophy and a archetypal since 2007.

But what was Slegers similar arsenic a footballer earlier a superior genu wounded ended her vocation successful 2016? 'Intelligent' is the connection that springs to caput from Leonne Stentler for the 55-cap Netherlands midfielder.

"You spot successful everything she does that she's precise intelligent," said Stentler, who played alongside Slegers with the Dutch nationalist side.

"Every enactment she makes connected the tract is intelligent. She knows which spaces she has to be, she was precise method - a beauteous technique."

The midfielder played for Dutch broadside Willem II earlier moving to Sweden for spells astatine Djurgardens and Linkoping, but it each came to an extremity erstwhile she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament wounded successful a affable against England - conscionable 9 months earlier the Netherlands went connected to triumph Euro 2017 nether Wiegman.

"Of people that's not however you privation to extremity a career. You privation to extremity connected a precocious and play shot and take erstwhile you privation to quit," said Emma Lennartsson, who played with Slegers astatine Linkoping.

The extremity of her playing vocation marked the commencement of a agleam aboriginal successful coaching.

However, it wasn't ever an evident calling for Slegers who studied connection sciences portion inactive playing the sport.

"In my opinion, she was mode excessively intelligent to bash thing successful coaching," Stentler said. "I would accidental she would spell enactment astatine a institution wherever she would negociate a batch of radical and conscionable person a large vocation successful thing similar that."

But erstwhile connection got circular that Slegers was moving done her Uefa coaching licence, radical started to instrumentality note.

"From that constituent connected successful Holland, immoderate of the women's shot experts were saying 'OK we should hold until Renee Slegers gets her Uefa pro [licence]. Then she would beryllium the champion adjacent Sarina Wiegman," Stentler added.

"Whenever a manager was sacked oregon conscionable quit, past always, everyone would accidental Renee Slegers would beryllium the perfect adjacent coach. Everyone believes a batch successful her."

After ending her playing vocation astatine Linkoping, Slegers stayed successful Sweden for the commencement of her coaching travel - taking complaint of Limhamn Bunkeflo and Sweden's Under-23s earlier moving to Rosengard to manager their B team.

When Jonas Eidevall near Rosengard to negociate Arsenal successful 2021, she was promoted to caput manager of the archetypal team, who she led to to back-to-back league titles earlier Eidevall called astir an idiosyncratic subordinate improvement relation astatine Arsenal successful 2023.

"I was playing with her lad astatine the time, but we were connected the locomotion erstwhile Jonas called and asked her whether she was funny successful that position," said Rosengard's caput of younker coaching, Jonathan Bartling, who remains bully friends with Slegers, her spouse - erstwhile Linkoping defender Maja Krantz - and their three-year-old son.

"I worked with Jonas myself for 2 years, and I cognize that helium knows his shot and is very, precise driven. So I deliberation it was a large opportunity, and particularly seeing present wherever she's astatine – it's a bully projection she's had there."

Former Scotland defender Jen Beattie was playing astatine Arsenal portion Slegers worked successful the subordinate improvement relation and said she "always springiness you the time".

"If you couldn't get an reply from the caput coach, you could ever spell to Renee and she would ever springiness you the clip to beryllium and chat astir something," Beattie said.

Just similar astatine Rosengard, Slegers has worked her mode up the ladder astatine Arsenal - archetypal becoming Eidevall's assistant, and past taking interim complaint erstwhile helium resigned successful October aft a disappointing commencement to the season.

Her interaction was instant. She went unbeaten successful her archetypal 11 games successful complaint - a tally of fixtures that proved to beryllium an almost-perfect audition for the imperishable position.

"Renee came successful she steadied the ship," Arsenal left-back Katie McCabe said.

"She instilled a assurance successful america and a belief. She oozes assurance and for me, I truly spot successful what she says and however she leads this team."

There person been immoderate bumps on the roadworthy since Slegers became the Gunners' caller boss, but 2 spectacular comeback wins against some Real Madrid and Lyon booked Arsenal's summons to the Champions League final, wherever they stunned European powerhouses Barcelona successful Lisbon.

"Knowing however to communicate" with her players has been cardinal to Sleger's success, according to Stentler, portion Beattie believes the Dutch manager has fixed Arsenal player's confidence.

"That's emblematic Renee - to marque definite you cognize each subordinate you're moving with, cognize however you attack them and however you should pass with them, however you tin marque them deliberation astir tactical ideas and transportation them to you," Stentler said.

Beattie added: "What she's done is perceive to players, knowing what they're thinking, what they request successful definite situations and filled them with confidence. I deliberation the assurance shining done the players is seen by each astatine the minute."

Jonna Andersson, who besides played with Slegers astatine Linkoping, said: "She sees everyone. She did it arsenic a subordinate arsenic well."

While Arsenal person enactment their fans done the wringer connected respective occasions successful the Champions League this season, Slegers has chopped a composed fig connected the touchline.

Despite her chill demeanour, the 36-year-old said aft Arsenal's comeback triumph against Lyon that though she whitethorn travel crossed arsenic though she "doesn't consciousness anything" she is "not conscionable calm and composed".

"She's ever precise existent to herself. She's calm and she has a batch of calmness implicit her, but she besides has a batch of humour truthful there's this equilibrium successful it," Stentler said.

"I don't cognize anyone who wouldn't similar her. It's casual to beryllium successful in the aforesaid country arsenic Renee.

Bartling, meanwhile, sees different broadside to Slegers, who visits him often successful Sweden and the brace often enactment connected "handiwork projects" together.

"She's astir apt precise overmuch the aforesaid idiosyncratic [as connected the pitch]. Maybe not the aforesaid magnitude of adrenaline connected the sideline, but precise friendly, family-orientated, down to earth, likes to beryllium rather handy," helium said.

"We've been moving a spot connected renovating. I don't cognize however you telephone it successful English - it's similar an allotment plot wherever you person this benignant of tiny location connected it.

"We've been renovating the level of 1 of those extracurricular rooms and gathering caller model panes for that room, planting and harvesting vegetables."

For Slegers, beating Barca was undoubtedly the biggest infinitesimal of her coaching vocation truthful far, but she was already a "role model" for many.

"We speech astir believing your dream, and I deliberation that's she's a relation model. I would accidental I usage her present successful my enactment with younker coaches arsenic a relation model," Bartling added.

"She's truthful firmly planted with some feet connected the ground. It's benignant of similar a idiosyncratic that that you could thin connected rather easily, adjacent though she's not that aged yet."