Kim Little issues rallying cry after shock Jonas Eidevall exit | OneFootball

Arsenal captain Kim Little has issued a rallying cry to her teammates following the news of head coach Jonas Eidevall's resignation.

It's been a difficult start to the season for the Gunners with just one win from their opening four WSL matches. They also suffered a disappointing 5-2 loss at the hands of Bayern Munich in the Champions League group stage last week.

Pressure had been mounting on the Swede for some time, with sections of the fanbase calling for his departure in recent weeks. That came into existence on Tuesday morning as news of his immediate exit rocked the women's football world.

The search for his successor is already underway, but assistant coach Renee Slegers will take on the role as interim for the time being. She will oversee upcoming fixtures against Valerenga on Wednesday and West Ham United on Sunday.

However, club captain Little insists the responsibility rests with the players to step up in this period of uncertainty. She says they must regroup and ensure they remain focused on the task at hand, which is a run of difficult fixtures.

"We were made aware this morning in our team meeting before we went out to train," she told the media in a press conference ahead of Wednesday's Champions League game. "It's sad. Jonas has been our leader for the last four years and he's made the choice to step away.

Arsenal announced Jonas Eidevall's resignation on Tuesday morning / Harry Murphy/GettyImages

"We have a huge amount of respect for him. As a group of players, our leadership group, we have to get everyone together. It's a big change, but we need to move forward now and change our focus to tomorrow's game.

"The strength of what Jonas has left is the foundations here. This incredible club has everything in place for us to succeed. We'll move forward with that, refocus, and bring the group together. Ultimately, our job as players is to go out there and play, so that's what we'll focus on.

"I expressed, along with the other leadership players, to be as supportive as we can to our staff. That's all we can do. It's challenging, but there have been a few of [these] occasions in my career as I've played for a long time. The most important thing is us staying together and putting on a really good performance tomorrow night."

Eidevall first took charge of Arsenal back in 2021, and over his three full seasons at the club he guided them to two League Cup trophies and a Champions League semi-final. In the league, they secured one second-place finish and two third-place finishes.