Tottenham Hotspur Women

6 Sep 2026

Some thoughts post Spurs 3-1 West Ham  There's the famous expression that "comparison is the thief of joy." In this case couldn't be further from the truth when you compare Spurs 1st game of the season this year compared to last year. Today Spurs came out winners once by 3 goals to 1 against West Ham at home in a very confident display compared to the same fixture last season where Spurs narrowly squeaked a 1-0 win. In a way it was kind of perfect that they got the chance to play the same team for the first game, two seasons in a row. This game was the kind of performance that shows how a team can improve when you invest smartly and early so that players have the chance to have a full pre-season.  The player of the match today was Kirsty Hanson on her competitive debut for The Lilywhites. Maybe somewhat surprisingly she started on the right wing of Martin Ho's base structure of a 4231, which saw give West Ham's back-line hell for the entirety of her time on the pitch as she caused havoc on & off the ball in behind, going down the line and cutting onside on her stronger(?) left foot (which was on full display for her 2nd goal). Compare this to last season where, honestly for half of the season, that right flank was a problem without Ella Morris at Rb & with there not really being a natural right-sided winger (Jess Naz, Olivia Holdt & Olga Ahtinen all got minutes there early last season where they were either not great or serviceable at best) and Spurs look so much more dangerous down that side now.  The actual starting lineup took most by surprise as one of Spurs' best players from last season in Olivia Holdt was left on the bench to allow Signe Gaupset (who had an involvement in the first 2 goals with 1 goal and the assist for Hanson's first) to start in the number 10 role, which allowed her to flourish today. Gaupset is so confident bringing the ball up the field and receiving between the opposing midfield & defensive lines and her being allowed to be the player that Spurs really look to get the ball to in the 2nd phase of possession and transition. Spurs opened the scoring with Gaupset getting on to the end of Julie Blakstad's knock down after some effective counter-pressing on the right flank saw Spurs awarded a throw, where Caitlin Dijkstra then found herself in a pocket of space on the right to deliver the ball into the box. This goal basically summed up Blakstad's performance as a flying wing-back seeing her basically act as Spurs auxilliary Lw, as she repeatedly looked to get into the box for crosses and she very nearly got on the scoresheet herself. This also allowed Matilda Vinberg to have a floating number 10 role on the inside left where she had a fairly underwhelming game but still picked up an assist.  Spurs on-ball structure looked more of a 325, which is really what Martin Ho tried to implement last season with starting Rb Caitlin Dijkstra tucking in as a wide Cb in a back 3. This has a built-in rest defence structure when Spurs have the ball higher up the field with 5 attackers and 5 deeper players. Martin Ho's philosophy involves retaining most of the ball, baiting the press in central areas to move the ball upfield and exploiting gaps between the lines. This also allowed Spurs to make use of the wide areas now with Blakstad and Hanson being incredibly dangerous out there with the help of Gaupset & Vinberg who were able to play in the inside-wide/half-spaces channels and link the play. Record signing Alice Sombath missed out today due to Martin Ho taking a cautious approach with her due to her injury history but because she can play either as a Rb or at centre-back, she should suit that role quite nicely. Drew Spence and Eveliina Summanen anchored the midfield well as the double pivots ahead of the defensive unit, as they were able to shuttle the ball to the front line and they were generally solid defensively. Cathinka Tandberg was the starting 9 today and had a quiet game but with a seemingly increased emphasis on crosses this season, she should still be ok as the season goes on. For as well as Spurs played today there are still some defensive concerns which will need to be looked as they will get exploited against bigger teams. Due to Spurs playing with a high defensive line and pressing player-to-player aggressively, West Ham did exploit the Spurs right flank as Dijkstra and, to a lesser extent, Toko Kōga got spun a few times which allowed West Ham into the final 3rd a bit too easily. The goal they conceded came from Asseyi receiving a through ball from newly signed Saki Kumagai, who had too much time and space just ahead of the centre circle to pick out a pass, allowing the Frenchwoman to slot past the onrushing Lize Kop to pick up a consolation goal.  Overall this was a near perfect start to Spurs' WSL campaign and they'll be looking to continue this momentum next week against Liverpool in St Helens.

4 Sep 2026

Spurs Men capped off a disappointing first few weeks of the season with some confusing transfer decisions and more manager red flags, but Spurs Women are in a good position to start strong in the Women's Super League.

4 Sep 2026

Rachel Cohen. 4th September 2026. The WSL returns today and Spurs play their first game on Sunday against West Ham. In case you haven’t been paying attention, there are three (big) reasons why it is time to get excited about this team. 1. We retained our best players. That might sound like a low bar, … Continue reading "Reasons to be excited about the return of Spurs Women."

2 Sep 2026

After a record equalling finish under Martin Ho last season and a summer recruitment strategy that has turned heads can Spurs push into the top four? Guardian writers’ predicted position: 5th (NB: this is not necessarily Suzanne Wracks’s prediction but the average of our writers’ tips) Last season’s position: 5th Continue reading...

1 Sep 2026

While move across north London has been amicable, the Dutch midfielder is relishing clash with former club There is not the same intensity to club rivalries between women’s teams as there is between their men’s counterparts, but as the game grows that is changing. Increasingly, there is animosity from fans if a player leaves for a rival side. Victoria Pelova’s move from Arsenal to Tottenham firmly bucks the trend, though. Despite arguably having her best years ahead of her, the 27-year-old departed with a lot of well wishes and love. Continue reading...

31 Aug 2026

Under the radar WSL fantasy game picks Defenders Ella Morris This maybe shouldn't come as that much of a surprise because she is one of the best right-backs in the top tier even though she doesn't get the pr that the top 4 teams get. At 4.5m for a starting right back that plays as more of a wing-back, that can score, assist & beat most opposition for pace. Her starting price of 4.5m is largely based on her injury record which, of course, is something to consider, but she has had a full pre-season this summer for the first time in her Spurs career. Spurs' defence improved last season as they conceded 6 less goals than the season before and the team overall scored 11 more. On a more personal note, Morris was the first women's footballer I wrote about on this blog, and she is one of my favourite players in the Spurs squad, so there is a decent amount of bias in this pick. But if you've ever watched her I don't think she's ever failed the eye test, and she is probably the most important signing of Vilahamn's first season. Paige Peake Ipswich's 2nd half of the season was much improved to such an extent that they finished fairly comfortably above the relegation zone having 9 points more than relegated Portsmouth. The key difference in Ipswich's uptick in form was that they managed to shore up their defence in the final 11 games of the season only allowing 12 goals compared to the 30 they conceded in the first half of the season. Paige Peake is probably the standout pick from their defence due to her (in the case of last season) being on penalties and deep set pieces. 5m is a decent price for player that's likely to start most of their games, has set piece threat with her height and she has a tendency to launch the ball into the box when Ipswich have a free kick near the halfway line.  Midfielders  Wilma Leidhammar Leidhammar is a really priced midfielder that is likely to be involved in most good things that Birmingham will do this season. I've written about her more in-depth recently, so I'll try to avoid re-hashing too much from that. At 6m she's very fairly priced for an exciting number 10 that can contribute to both goals and assists.  If you like players that can find space in between the opposing midfield and defensive lines, finish on either foot and someone that has an eye for playing the final ball then Leidhammar is a great pick, just maybe not straight away as she has to face last season's champions in Manchester City. Beth Hepple I actually changed my mind part way through writing this as I was going to include Mollie Lambert who made a big move to fellow North East team Newcastle. But when I dug into the numbers a bit more, it was hard to ignore just how impactful Hepple was for Durham last season. Hepple is priced at a premium 7.5m but is a massive differential (like everyone on this list) at just 2% ownership at the time of writing. Last season she put up a very impressive 8 goals & 4 assists as the team's primary source of creativity and joint set-piece taker next to Michaela Foster. Hepple and the aforementioned Lambert, were the best players in what was a pretty dour season for Durham and Hepple is likely to be their main source of goals again this season. Forwards  Beatta Olsson This one is kind of a surprise to me that she has such little ownership since she was an absolute goal machine for Liverpool last season. Beata Olsson managed 6 league goals from 13 league starts in her maiden WSL campaign in what was a slightly injury hit campaign for the Swede. She can pretty confidently finish on both feet, carry the ball to a good level & she has elite movement in the box to find space for herself to finish cutbacks. 6.5m for an established goal scorer, with a near guaranteed starting spot in a team that has recruited well and quickly this summer, should make Olsson an appealing differential for any fantasy manager in need of a mid-priced forward. Her first match this season is against newly promoted Charlton who, for as good as their defence was at times last season, are fairly blunt going forward and a portion of their starting defenders are somewhat untested at the top level. Poppy Pritchard This pick is a little more of a wildcard given that Poppy Pritchard hasn't actually scored a league goal for 2 seasons but I am fairly confident that she will show her goal-scoring talents for recently relegated Leicester City. Leicester as a club are a bit difficult to predict this coming season as they have lost an alarming amount of players this summer, but Pritchard looks like a fairly low risk gamble for a young forward.  Priced at 5m in the game, with a good chance of being a starter & less than 1% ownership at the time of writing (although also at the time of writing she's still listed as a Man City player) Pritchard could be a sleeper hit this season if she's allowed some stability as a starting 9. One of her better games for Durham actually came on the left wing against Southampton which, maybe strangely, showcased just how good her back to goal play is/can be when she was out wide. This aspect of her game could also add to her assist potential if her Leicester teammates can put up better attacking performances in the WSL2.

N17 Women

Han-some Win

Spurs Women kicked off the new WSL season with a decisive derby win, a 3-1 victory over West Ham United!We chat:• Starting XI and strong bench• Signe strikes first• Kirsty's debut double• Late goal concession& morePlus, we discuss the tall task ahead for the soon-to-be-announced Women's Growth D...

Hometown Glory

"Can I Get A..."

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