Jonas Eidevall held his pre-Liverpool press conference at London Colney on Friday afternoon.
The boss was asked about the long-awaited return of Leah Williamson, players returning from the international break, what he expects from Liverpool and approaching his 100th game in charge.
Here’s everything he had to say:
on how good it was to see Leah Williamson on the pitch again…
Great. It's really nice to see her be able to step onto the field again. Of course, she's been training a lot with us lately and the last few weeks, she's been able to train fully as well. So for me, it didn't come as a surprise but I think when you haven't seen her in training, then maybe things happen quicker. But it's really great. It's a great addition.
on Leah’s immediate impact in the Reading game…
Very good. I think it's tricky coming on as a central defender, sometimes. Thirty minutes there and you need to get into the rhythm of it. But I think it was a nice game to come into because we saw a lot of the ball, so there was a lot of decision-making. I mean, the pass for Beth Mead's goal, it's almost as good as the finish is. She’s definitely still got it. If you've been worried, you can stop worrying.
on what Leah can bring to our side for the rest of the season…
I don't necessarily think that we will change our style. But of course, what Leah gives you as a player is both her ability to pass the ball between lines and break down defensive organisation, but of course, she's also very capable of handling one v one situations so she can be quite aggressive in her positions in suffocating forwards. And those are two skills that are really important for us in the way that we play. So it's not about us changing our way of playing. It's just that we get in a player that is really good at this way of playing.
on how returning players affect team morale…
The group has been very strong together and the players that have been out injured have played a really big role in that and developing the group and developing the way that we play as well. So I think if we look at the last months here, Leah has been very involved and played a huge part off the pitch as well. That has come gradually, so that's not a big change here now in January.
on how he rates Leah’s chances of returning to the England team…
I think you have to be humble with one of the best national teams in the world. Sarina Wiegman has a lot of good players to decide between. Realistically, she has played 30 minutes in the Conti Cup. She needs to play more minutes in order to be available for selection for the national team as well. But there is a long time until the next international window here in mid-February, so I think it's all up to Leah what she does with those minutes and then it's up to Sarina to select.
on his proudest achievement at Arsenal after 100 games…
That’s a tricky one. There are a few moments that I'm really proud of that we have achieved together. I think it was special to go to Lyon and beat them 5-1. They were the reigning European champions. I think it was special to win a trophy and beat Chelsea in the Conti Cup final. I thought it was special going to the Champions League semi-final with the team and then being so close with so many injuries that we had and taking Wolfsburg to extra time and so close to a penalty shootout.
I think that's my most memorable moment and that's for good and bad reasons, because I was so proud of being there and seeing the team performing so well, despite all the difficulties and sharing that moment with a packed Emirates Stadium - that was special. That's the sunny part of that memory. But then you also have that dark side of the memory of being so close to going into the penalty shootout and then losing everything in the last seconds of the game and not being able to repair that. That's also going to stick, but I think that's what football teaches you. you will have both good and bad memories, and sometimes they're combined into one.
on how difficult it is to reintegrate Leah as a centre-back…
I think you’re right about that. Sometimes you might have to adapt to how reality looks like. There are very few teams that reintegrate goalkeepers by playing them [for] 30 minutes, and then 45 minutes, and 60 minutes. I think that’s one model [on] how you can integrate a player, but there are other models as well and we need to find one that matches the reality and the situations that we’re in, and still allow her, first and foremost, to return safely but also to perform as good as possible.
on how Leah and Beth add a different dimension to the final third after combining for the latter’s goal against Reading…
I mean, they’re two world-class players, and when you see a moment like that in the Reading game, you see the qualities. Of course, when you’re coming back from an injury, it’s about being consistent, being able to do that on a consistent level day in and day out. Having both Beth and Leah back, and with other players back, they’re great additions for us and it gives us great potential for the rest of the season.
on Lina Hurtig’s injury prognosis…
For any player who goes through injuries, it’s a tough time, especially when it comes to repeated injuries. I don’t have any clear prognosis on Lina at the moment, which of course is frustrating. We have to wait and see when we know more, then hopefully we can communicate that.
on the growth in support he’s witnessed since joining the club…
[It means] a lot. One of the things that makes us really unique is our supporters. It’s how they fill the Emirates, it’s how they travel in numbers. We were away at Reading in the Conti Cup on Wednesday night, and all I see is red and white, all I hear are Gooners, it’s incredible.
I think about [how] it looked two-and-a-half years ago and where we are now, there’s been incredible movement, it’s such a huge part of what we’re trying to build here, and let’s hope that this is only the beginning and it continues, and usually it should do that. Once a snowball gets rolling, it goes faster and faster, and picks up more and more snow. So hopefully, we’re building something big.
on how the team is approaching Liverpool…
Mostly we focus on ourselves and what we need to do. Liverpool are a very capable team, I think they obviously didn’t have the strongest performance in the last game against Man City, and I think they’re probably going to be up to correct that against us. They’re aggressive in their pressing, they go player-for-player and you need to be able to deal with that intensity as well. It’s a challenge, but we’re up for it.
on how Liverpool are competing…
As I said, this WSL is the strongest and most competitive it’s ever been, and Liverpool are a part of that. Amongst other clubs, they’re investing in their facilities and their playing squad. Of course, that also gets them development on the pitch.
on whether Leah is likely to start on Sunday…
It’s very unlikely that you’ll get an answer from me regarding my starting XI!
on if there will be any changes from Wednesday with regards to team news…
No, there is not. We have a really good squad to select from.
on any more transfer news…
That’s still potentially open.
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