Young Player of the Year Smith ‘learning so much’ at Arsenal

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

Olivia Smith is “learning so much” at Arsenal, as she hailed the influence of coach Renee Slegers and the Gunners’ more experienced players.

Smith joined Arsenal from Liverpool last year, with the Gunners paying a then-world-record fee of £1m.

She was fresh off the back of winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award, having scored seven goals in 20 Women’s Super League appearances for the Reds in the 2024-25 season.

And after her first season at Arsenal, Smith has won the award again. Only Lauren Hemp had previously won it more than once, and the Canadian is just the second Arsenal player to win it, after Leah Williamson in 2014-15.

The winner of the 2026 PFA Young Player of the Year award: Olivia Smith

— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) August 25, 2026

Smith made 20 WSL appearances last term, scoring five goals and providing three assists. She slightly outperformed her 3.9 expected goals (xG), while she created 24 chances, too, a tally bettered by only Mariona Caldentey (46), Alessia Russo (32) and Beth Mead (26) among her club-mates.

Arsenal finished second, behind Manchester City, in the WSL last season, and Smith is loving life under Slegers.

In an exclusive interview with Opta Analyst, Smith said: “It’s what’s so great about this club. Renee instils so much confidence in me that she encourages me to go one-v-one, get into the box, find the cross.

“She puts a lot of confidence in me to do what I do best and get into the box and make those decisions.

“I think that even just over last season, getting to play with Less [Alessio Russo], Maria [Caldentey], has helped improve my game so much, and knowing them as people and what they want on the pitch makes it so much easier to impress during games.

“I’ve been learning so much, and it’s only helping me so much more as a player getting to play with them. Not even just tactically, but helping me grow as a person as well – I think that’s also really important and that gets overshadowed sometimes.”

Slegers certainly showed plenty of faith in Smith, with the 22-year-old making 38 appearances across all competitions. Only three Arsenal players featured more times in 2025-26.

Smith finished with 14 goal involvements.

However, Smith told Opta Analyst that she needed some time to settle into her new surroundings.

“Initially it was a bit difficult. I was so used to just getting the ball in space and running straight to goal and engaging in one-v-ones or two-v-ones, using my speed when they [the opposition] weren’t ready,” she said.

“Now, playing for a team like Arsenal, we keep a lot of possession and teams are often set in a low block, and obviously that makes it a bit tougher because they’re a lot more structured and ready for maybe a one-v-one where team-mates are ready to come and double down.

“It’s definitely been a big learning curve this season on timings and reading the play.”

Olivia Smith is the PFA Young Player of the Year for a second consecutive season, voted for by the players pic.twitter.com/Nqd8cbCNKm

Smith was mainly used as a striker at Liverpool, but she has been deployed in a variety of positions by Slegers.

“I think it’s very dependent on the opponent,” Smith said. “Renee has used me on the left, right and central.

“If I’m on the left, then I love to cut in, shoot or combine, whereas if I’m on the right, then I love to take the ball down the line for a one-v-one or cross, but I can also cut in on my left. When I’m [a striker], I can use my speed to run in behind defenders.

“Honestly, I’m just grateful to be on the pitch, and I use every minute I can to make the best out of it and make whatever impact I can.”

While Arsenal could not defend their Women’s Champions League crown last season, while also failing to sustain a title challenge, Smith is expecting big things this term.

The Gunners did lift the inaugural FIFA Women’s Champions Cup trophy in February, though, with Smith playing a key part in their success.

“We’ve had a whole pre-season together, and it’s looking really exciting and dangerous,” she added.

“We have tons of ambition this season, and we want to win whatever silverware we can… we want it all this year.”

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