Arsenal Women go in search of a third successive win on Sunday when Aston Villa visit the Emirates Stadium for a 12noon kick-off in the Women's Super League, with Renée Slegers insisting two good results do not mean her side's problems are solved.

'We have to back this up'

Arsenal followed a 2-1 north London derby win at Tottenham with a 3-0 Champions League victory over Benfica on Wednesday, Alessia Russo scoring all three goals. According to Arseblog News, it is the first time this season that Slegers' team have managed back-to-back victories.

"You work so hard for the rewards, and we are here to win," Slegers said, as reported by Daily Cannon. "We've done that twice now, which is great, but we have to back this up as well."

She said the message delivered after the Spurs win had not changed, describing the Benfica display as "us" and adding that the focus now is on backing it up against Villa.

Villa's new look

Villa arrive under Brian Sørensen, and Slegers said they have made a strong start — "four wins and a draw", with their most recent victory coming on penalties — as reported by Arseblog News. She noted that Villa are in transition and have changed their system, making them harder to prepare for.

"We have to be prepared, we have to be humble," she said. "What they're going to do, it's always a guessing game."

Slegers also remembered the previous season’s match at the Emirates, where an early Frida Maanum strike was equalised by a stoppage-time goal from Paula Tomas — which was one of the six league draws Arsenal registered. The corresponding away game at Villa Park in May ended 3-0 to Arsenal, with Russo scoring twice and Maanum once.

Team news

Katie Reid injured her ankle in training and will be out for the remainder of the year at the very least, Arseblog News reports. The 20-year-old had recently returned to full training following an ACL injury.

Frida Maanum has a chance of being in the squad after a quad injury. None of Mariona, Agyemang, Kelly or Cerci can feature, and although Daphne van Domselaar is nearing a comeback, Sunday could arrive too soon for her.

Arseblog News also highlighted encouraging signs from a front two of Smith and Russo across the past two matches, with Hinds and Foord helping to steady the left side of the team.

Photo: Arne Müseler via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, resized.