Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers was keen to make sure fans and players were not downhearted following their 2-0 defeat away to Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final.

The return leg will be at the Emirates Stadium next Thursday, with Slegers eager to point out that we are only halfway through the tie.

“It’s only half-time. It’s 2-0 to Real Madrid at the moment but we’re going to play against them again at the Emirates and we’ll have to believe that we can score two goals with the fans behind us," she told the official club website.

“We heard the fans the whole game here as well today, so thanks for that. Thanks for the support and we always know that they will bring us that extra edge, that extra energy when we play at home with all the fans behind us so I’m looking forward to that.”

Arsenal were drawn against Real Madrid having topped Group C, finishing two points above Bayern Munich, though now face elimination should they fail to turn the aggregate score around.

Despite having been beaten by two goals, Slegers believed that it was not a fair reflection on the performance of her side, suggesting it was tighter than the scoreline would have you believe.

Defeat in Madrid.

Time to regroup and take the tie back to N5. pic.twitter.com/eA0zdI4jdM

— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) March 18, 2025

“It was quite an even game. We knew beforehand that it was going to be a battle between two well-organised teams," she said.

“I think Real Madrid got maximum reward for what they created and what their game plan was today, so credit to them.

“I don’t believe in bad luck, so I think it’s about the details that we need to do better. So, what kind of attacks do we create, how do we position without the ball.

"The season hasn’t been perfect all the way, we have been dealing with things along the way and I think that’s part of sport and that’s what makes great athletes and great teams. Teams that can come back and want to get better. 

“I think performances and results can be a big motivator to try and do things better next time, so there’s definitely a lot of key learnings from this game and we see all the potential opportunities to perform better in the home game.”

The winner of the tie will face either Lyon or Bayern Munich in the semi-final, while next up for Arsenal is a home game against Liverpool in the WSL on Saturday.