Arsenal head coach Renee Slegers gave her opinion on the decisive penalty decision that saw her side lose 1-0 away to Chelsea.

Kim Little was adjudged to have fouled substitute Lauren James with seven minutes remaining at Stamford Bridge, but replays suggested that the Arsenal captain did make contact with the ball in the process of challenging James.

Slegers said in her post-match press conference: “It’s obviously very hard to see from the sidelines. I’ve seen some footage and what I can see there is that Kim gets to the ball first. It's not on me to comment more on that."

Katie McCabe was sent off for two yellow cards in quick succession for foul and abusive language towards referee Emily Heaslip after the penalty was awarded. 

“It was a conversation or words between Katie and the referee, but I don’t know the details,” said Slegers. I haven’t spoken to Katie yet. 

“Am I disappointed with Katie? No. I wouldn't say that. I think she's developed so much as a person, staying calm and finding the right arousal levels to be at her best. 

“I think she's done that very well over time, and I'll talk to her and find out what exactly happened, so I don't know the details of the situation.

Asked if VAR should be introduced in the Women’s Super League, Slegers said: “I think so. The stakes are getting higher in women’s football as well. I think we need that as well in the game. 

“I also think it’s important that the game is attractive for fans, I think what VAR does do is it slows down the game and gives it more breaks. But I think with time that will probably develop. It would be good for us to have VAR.”

Reflecting on the game itself, Slegers said: “We had to get through that first period of the game, the first ten minutes. We knew Chelsea was going to come out fast and get in behind us and go forward and that's what they did, they're very powerful. So I'm happy the girls got through that phase of the game. 

“And then I think we start to establish ourselves in the game. We take over more and more control and I think we play the game that we want to play even though we’re a little bit sloppy maybe, more than what we usually would be. But I think we play some really good football at times. 

“What was lacking today was the goals. I think we created one or two good enough chances to score today. And you know you're not going to get a lot against Chelsea. So for next time, be a little bit more clinical with the chances. We knew it was going to be very tight today with small margins and details that matter.”