BARCELONA, Spain -- Arsenal manager Renée Slegers praised her team's "resilient" performance in 1-1 draw with holders Barcelona to keep their European unbeaten streak intact.
The result saw Slegers' side snap Barcelona's 11-game home winning streak in the Champions League and gain some momentum following a poor start to the season domestically.
The Gunners struck early through Frida Maanum and held off against a wasteful Barcelona who struggled to convert their copious chances.
Barcelona were able to even the score through Caroline Graham Hansen and Arsenal were disciplined to prevent the Catalans from sneaking a late winner.
"The way we play the game tonight, it's very different than what we usually live and we can do it this way and so that's a big boost to our process and that's what we're going to take with us going forwards," Slegers said.
"We have to look forward, because the next game is around the corner against London City and they have similarities as well, they have a really, really good team."
Barcelona had 24 shots, with seven on target, compared to Arsenal's seven shots with three on target.
"I think if you look at the game and the amount of chances they had a draw is probably fair, but definitely towards the end we had some corners and moments that we created, we went for it," Slegers added. "It's really difficult to go to Barcelona away, so the one point is OKfor us, of course, I wanted three."
When asked to sum up the performance with adjectives, Slegers said: "Resilience, discipline, clarity, communication, leadership, bravery as well, a lot of words. There are a lot of elements in this performance that we definitely want to build on.
"This is a very different game to play, but there are of course, elements in the performance today that we want to and need to take forwards, because it's there in the team. And we have to bring it in every single day."
The last time these two sides met, Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory over Barcelona in the 2025 Champions League final in Lisbon. This time, they were seen as underdogs, not expected to take points off the league phase leaders.
"The pressure is so hard in this game, always, because every single second you have to make a decision, or you have to act on the pitch, because both mentally and physically, technically you have no time or space and because they congest with so many numbers around the ball," Slegers said. "It's really, really challenging this game."
The Gunners face third place London City Lionesses in the Women's Super League (WSL) on Sunday.
Already 12 points adrift off leaders Manchester City, a loss would be catastrophic to their hopes of getting back into contention for a Champions League place for next season before facing OL Lyonnes in the competition next week.