Renee Slegers piled on the praise for Alessia Russo after the striker’s brace helped Arsenal to a 3-1 victory over Valerenga in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Slegers fronted the media following Arsenal’s victory over Valerenga in the Women’s Champions League and in anticipation of a meeting with Liverpool in the Women’s Super League (WSL) this Sunday.
Russo has been in firing form over recent weeks, and a brace in Norway made it eight goals in nine appearances for the striker. The 25-year-old opened the scoring in Oslo with an intuitive finish, weaving past her defender before burying her strike into the bottom-right corner.
“She’s a player that works really hard,” praised Slegers. “She’s determined to get the best out of herself. You see that in training, she works closely with Kelly Smith as well in trainings and reviewing games.”
The formidable form arrives after a dry spell at the start of the season, where Russo went goalless for Arsenal’s first nine competitive fixtures of the 2023/24 campaign, Since the departure of former head coach Jonas Eidevall, the Lionesses striker has become unstoppable.
“I think players the that have this mindset, this growth mindset, always want to become better,” Slegers continued. “They will eventually become better. I don’t think there’s any other result. When it’s going to end, you don’t know, but I think for Less it’s great. I’m very happy for her, that all the work that she’s been putting in, that it’s that it’s coming off.”
The interim head coach also provided fans with a fitness update for the Arsenal side set to face the Reds this Sunday. Slegers confirmed that captain Kim Little “has been in training” despite not making the travelling squad midweek.
“She will be with us today and tomorrow, so we will see how she progresses. She might be an option for Sunday,” Slegers noted.
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