Former Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall has said that he felt the “easiest and quickest way” to help the club bounce back from their sluggish start to the season was to resign, believing the relationship with the fans had become irreconcilable and was affecting the team on the pitch.
The Swede resigned in October following consecutive losses to Chelsea and Bayern Munich. He was appointed as the head coach of National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) side San Diego Wave on Tuesday.
“I had decided personally before that Chelsea game that it would be the best decision for me step away,” Eidevall told Sky Sports. “What I saw was a team that was only missing small details, but I saw at that moment my relationship with the supporters was like a cloud hanging over.”
Arsenal had lost 5-2 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League just days before falling short against Chelsea. Following the loss to Chelsea, Arsenal had only won one of their first four Women’s Super League (WSL) games.
“We needed to find a quick way to remove that cloud. It was an incredibly difficult decision for me to take, because you have a part of you that wants to be a fighter and prove doubters wrong — that’s what I’ve been doing my whole career,” he said.
“But you have to zoom out, and understand what is about you, and what’s about the team — what do the players need in this moment? I thought the easiest and quickest way to help the players perform was to remove that cloud, and that was me stepping away.”
Sources previously told ESPN that Eidevall had lost the dressing room following the losses, sparking his decision to step down.
Other sources revealed that Eidevall also felt the breakdown with fans had gone too far. Some fans wrote “Jonas Out” in large white letters on the wall opposite the Emirates Stadium days before his resignation was announced.
“It was evident I lost quite a lot of my relationship with the supporters when we decided not to renew [Vivianne] Miedema’s contract,” Eidevall added. “All in all, it was a decision that played hard on me but that’s life sometimes.”
