Laura Hunter, the Sky Sports columnist, breaks down the most pressing issues emerging from the second round of the Women’s Super League, giving readers a deeper look at the narratives shaping the women’s game today. Over the past fortnight, Arsenal manager Renee Slegers has been forced to wear a brave face as her side has endured a dismal run of form.
The Gunners have failed to win any of their last four league matches, marking their poorest start to a season since 2014. When you examine their position in the table, the picture becomes even more worrying. Slegers has repeatedly argued that the team is being undone by "fine margins," suggesting that tiny differences in performance are to blame for the lack of points.
That explanation loses credibility the longer the winless streak drags on. In fact, the argument seemed to collapse entirely when, after the loss to Manchester City, Slegers announced that the club would use the forthcoming international break to conduct a thorough review of "not only what we see on matchday, but everything in the background." She added, "We have to turn over every stone." By definition, fine margins do not usually demand such an exhaustive audit.
To claim that Arsenal has merely been unlucky ignores the fact that minor adjustments are unlikely to reverse the malaise affecting a squad of this calibre. If simple tweaks could solve the problem, many of the issues Slegers promises to address over the next two weeks would already be resolved.
What appears to be happening instead is a crisis of confidence. The players seem to be plagued by self‑doubt, especially in high‑pressure moments that decide games. This lack of belief manifests itself in a variety of ways and has tangible consequences on the pitch.
Take, for example, the opening minutes of the Etihad clash on Sunday. Within three minutes, Lisa Baum—still a newcomer to the league—managed to evade the defensive pressure of Niamh Charles, a feat she repeated several times throughout the match. Instead of passing the ball back to Alessia Russo for a simple tap‑in, Baum chose to attempt a low‑probability shot from near the post, which ultimately went wide.
In isolation, that decision could be dismissed as a youthful error; Baum is a dynamic winger eager to make an impact. Yet the pattern of opting for low‑percentage chances rather than the higher‑probability options is becoming a recurring theme that hampers Arsenal’s attacking output. A similar scenario unfolded when Georgia Stanway delivered a beautiful, sweeping pass to Emily Fox on the right wing. Fox tried to curl the ball past Ayaka Yamashita from an almost impossible angle.
A split‑second of patience would have allowed Russo to make a clever run on the blind side of Jade Rose, positioning herself perfectly for a back‑post finish. Instead, the attempt fell short, and the chance was lost. Stanway’s own 30‑yard effort shortly after that displayed the same lack of composure; the shot missed the target entirely.
When isolated incidents become a pattern, they create a cycle of uncertainty that erodes a team’s ability to close out games. Statistically, the evidence backs up this narrative. Arsenal’s expected‑goals (xG) differential is the worst in the league, and their conversion rate is equally alarming.
As desperation sets in, players are taking shots that are more about relief than quality, and the underlying doubt seeps into the very patterns of play that have traditionally defined Arsenal’s identity. This was not a defeat decided by a razor‑thin margin.
Manchester City simply have more lethal players and a more fluid system. Under Andree Jeglertz, City operates with a full range of motion, balanced transitions through each third, and clear intent in every phase of possession. Jeglertz praised Arsenal after the match, calling them a "great football team," but he also highlighted his own side’s "very fluent" attacking play, noting that "we score in different ways." Arsenal’s creative paralysis prevents them from replicating that variety.
Their two goals came largely from defensive lapses on City’s part rather than any proactive brilliance from the Gunners. Alessia Russo did manage to remind everyone of her finishing ability with a well‑timed strike in the second half—her first league goal of the campaign—yet her moment of quality does little to mask the broader issues of form and confidence that affect many of the squad. Looking ahead, Slegers and her coaching staff face a daunting task.
The next block of fixtures, including a north‑London derby later this month, will serve as the toughest test of her tenure to date. Despite the current results, the Dutch manager has forged a strong rapport with her players and still enjoys the backing of the club hierarchy, even though consistency remains elusive. The club is unlikely to alter its stance during the international window, but the period does present an opportunity for a genuine reality check. Arsenal can no longer hide behind the excuse of fine margins.
They need a decisive shift in mindset during the break and a willingness to own the shortcomings that have already been exposed. The gap to league leaders Manchester City is not a narrow slice; it is a substantial ten‑point deficit that underscores the scale of the challenge. In summary, Arsenal must move beyond the notion of marginal losses and focus on rebuilding confidence, sharpening decision‑making in the final third, and re‑establishing the fluid, purposeful play that once made them a dominant force.
Only then can they hope to close the widening chasm with the top‑of‑the‑table side and restore the belief that their supporters deserve.