'It felt like a cloud was hanging over us' Eidevall opens up on Miedema decision, time at Arsenal, Slegers and Hayes

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Former Arsenal Women boss Jonas Eidevall says that the decision not to renew Vivianne Miedema's contract at the end of last season was one of the key drivers behind his resignation in October. The Swede, who was yesterday confirmed as the new Head Coach of San Diego Wave. Eidevall acknowledges that the decision not to extend Miedema's deal and allow her to move to Manchester City on a free transfer broke his relationship with the supporters which created 'a cloud' over the team.

Eidevall spoke to Aftonbladet, as well as Sky Sports and Sports Illustrated. Aftonbladet's Frida Fangelund, who spoke to Jonas, kindly translated the interview for us.

'What I experienced was that my relationship with the supporters was so bad after we let Vivianne Miedema and there was no quick fix,' Eidevall said. 'I felt like there was a cloud hanging over us. If it had just been hanging over me, then I would have been fine. No worries.

‘But if it becomes a narrative that affects the team, then the team’s performance in the first half of the season will not benefit. Then we needed to find a way to get rid of the cloud and the easiest way was for me to leave.'

Eidevall says there was a simple economic decision to make when the opportunity to sign Mariona Caldentey from Barcelona arose, 'You have a limited budget that you have to deal with and we had the opportunity to sign Mariona Caldentey or extend Vivianne Miedema’s contract, then you have to choose either or. But it’s not a decision that you then stand at a press conference and talk about and say “we had to choose between two players”. The reality is that we couldn’t afford both. Then I have to make a decision about what I think is best for the club.'

Eidevall admits that he underestimated the pushback over the decision, 'I usually think that I am good at predicting the consequences of a decision, but I have to be honest and say that I didn’t see that coming. But I would still have made the same decision, I am convinced that Caldentey will continue to be a huge asset for Arsenal. I have never had any problems working with Miedema. She is a strong personality and will always speak her mind, which is similar to me as a person. It was a decision that was made on purely sporting grounds.'

Eidevall also says the lack of a Sporting Director at Arsenal Women impacted him, 'At Arsenal, we had 37 employees when I left. 27-28 players in the squad. One of the parts that I found draining, and another reason of me leaving, was the lack of a sports director to work with daily.

'I almost found it overwhelming to deal with so many people on a daily basis. I felt like I lacked time to be anything else but business. Whenever I spoke to anyone at Arsenal, it was because I had an agenda. I had zero conversations that were just "how are you?" It made me feel some kind of small void.'

The Swede brought current interim manager Renee Slegers to the club in the summer of 2023 having worked with her at Rosengard and Eidevall endorsed her candidacy for the permanent job. 'I find Renée to be a great leader. She's got good values, strong football knowledge and it makes me very happy to see the good results and performance that she, the team and the coaching team have put together and I really hope that people see the opportunity for them to continue. I think that would be the best thing for the club.'

Eidevall also spoke about his strained relationship with former Chelsea boss Emma Hayes and his disappointment over her behaviour and comments following the Gunners' Conti Cup Final victory over Chelsea in March when Hayes pushed the Arsenal manager away as he offered his hand at the final whistle.

Chelsea had vetoed Arsenal's preference for a multi ball system in the final but when the ball went out for a throw-in during stoppage time, Chelsea midfielder Erin Cuthbert tried to restart play with an extra ball. Eidevall objected and Hayes afterwards accused the Swede of showing 'male aggression' in the technical area.

'The reaction after the match when she gives me a little push, that was a non-event for me. I can live with that. I understand those who say that if it had been the other way around, what would have happened to me then? But that is so far from my reality, I would never have done that. So I put that aside.

'However, the comments after the match, when the adrenaline had subsided, I was very disappointed. Very disappointed. And I am also very disappointed that she was not able to send a message or make a call and say that it went wrong. Then we can go from having a good relationship to having no relationship. I won’t be the one to reach out either because I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong in the situation.'

Arsenal are yet to appoint a full-time successor for Jonas Eidevall with Slegers remaining in Interim charge for the time being. Our understanding is that the process is set to draw to a conclusion soon, with many candidates interviewed, including Slegers. Sources are very tight lipped on what the ultimate conclusion will be.

With thanks to Frida Fangelund for the full translation.

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