New Aston Villa manager Natalia Arroyo spoke to the media to preview her first game in charge when her side host Chelsea on Sunday.
The Spaniard was appointed on 22nd January following Robert de Pauw’s departure in December and Shaun Goater’s spell in interim charge. Villa are 9th in the league and Arroyo said while a title challenge is out of the question, Villa will look to climb as high as possible in the games ahead.
Her first game in charge will be a baptism of fire against Sonia Bompastor’s undefeated Chelsea, who are seven points clear at the top of the Barclays Women’s Super League.
What did Natalia Arroyo say?
“It’s up to us to use the games that we have left to end strong. Winning the games we need to win, compete as good as we can compete and push to be as high as possible on the table. Finish the season strong and build what it needs to be next season. It always starts from now. We won’t win the league. We need to accept that.”
Arroyo arrived in England on Monday. “It’s been three big, exciting, intense days, getting to know everything and the processes of the club. At the moment everything is great. We are having good trainings, good meetings with the players to try to start building what we want to build.”
Embed from Getty ImagesThe 38-year-old came through Barcelona’s youth academy to their first team before leaving for RCD Espanyol Femení in 2006. She played there for two seasons before retiring due to injuries in 2009. This is the Spaniard’s first role outside Spain, having coached Real Sociedad to UEFA Women’s Champions League qualification.
“I’m excited to be here, having the opportunity, the challenge, to coach, to be a manager in the best league in Europe and probably the best league in the world. I had a great four years in Spain [La Real Sociedad] and it was difficult for me to improve there. My ambitions were to be here. It’s like a dream come true.”
She spoke on what Villa looks to achieve this season. “I think the journey of the club is good. Even in the years with Carla [Ward], they started building what I’m now getting. The team is what it has been in the last seasons. Robert [De Pauw] started with some ideas, and Shaun [Goater] got some results after an unstable dynamic. And now the challenge is to understand our position in the table is not where we want to be as a club and as a competitive squad, and staff.
“We are too far away [from the top of the table] and it’s not only [the goal] to get away from the last positions, but to really believe that whatever we start building today will help us to be stronger tomorrow and in the future.”
Embed from Getty ImagesAston Villa last faced Chelsea on the opening weekend of the WSL, with Johanna Rytting Kaneryd’s goal sealing all three points for the Blues. Villa tested the defending champions in that opener – but since then, Bompastor’s side have gone from strength to strength and are still unbeaten in the league.
On Sunday’s game, Arroyo said: “Big challenge. Probably the biggest one against the title holder. A team that just conceded one draw. We have nothing to lose. So it is a great opportunity for me to try to show the players that we need to be brave, that we need to really feel and trust the process and try to do our best performance possible. And let’s see if we can put them under pressure and we will try to beat them.”
“They will show us where the level is at the top of this league, which is the distance that separates us from them.”
“Our mission, our goal in these months is to make this gap shorter.”
On the style fans can expect from her side, Arroyo said: “To try and be as brave as possible. In possession and out of possession. To try and be a team that does not wait for things to happen, but to be proactive.”
Villa will be without Mayumi Pacheco, who Arroyo said has been unable to train with the team since coming off injured in their 4-2 loss to Manchester CIty last weekend. Chelsea’s last league outing was a narrow win over rivals Arsenal, secured by a late Guro Reiten penalty.
Aston Villa host Chelsea at Villa Park on Sunday 2nd February, with kickoff at 14:30 GMT.