Perfectly mid-table: How are Spurs shaping up after crucial win over Everton?
A series of heavy defeats piled the pressure on Tottenham but a 2-1 win over Everton has sent them into the top half of the table.
As the final whistle went on Sunday everyone connected with Tottenham breathed a sigh of relief. Spurs went into this game in eighth, a point ahead of Everton and two points off the bottom. Their 2-1 victory over Everton at home, alongside games elsewhere going their way, nudged the north London side into the top half of the and up to sixth.
The victory also meant defeating something of a bogey team. Across ten WSL encounters with Everton, Spurs have come away victorious only once – and that was back in 2021. Since then, there have been a lot of draws and a notorious 3-0 loss at Brisbane Road in 2022, a game which marked the nadir of Spurs’ descent into chaos under Rehanne Skinner.
Going to plan - sort of
In his pre-game press conference, Tottenham’s current manager, Robert Vilahamn, had clarified his priorities. He wanted the team to “score a lot of goals” and “keep a clean sheet.” Adding that, “the mindset will be to play attacking football with high-press” and to “go in hard and not give [Everton] much space.”
If that was the aim, it was probably job at least half-done. Spurs did not score a lot of goals – only two, a somewhat fortunate albeit well-taken penalty and clever corner move – clearly one practised on the training ground because it was attempted twice before it came off. The fact that Spurs did not score more was partly down to excellent keeping by Courtney Brosnan and some poor finishing. Vilahamn’s team took 26 shots, eight on target, for a combined xG of 3.2 compared with Everton’s 0.76 (McLachBot).
In the first half, Spurs pressed high, winning turnovers in the final third and recovering the ball quickly. They were happy to take on players with calm and even try some neat passing patterns. There was a familiarity with one another that a few weeks back had seemed impossibly hard to achieve – with Ashleigh Neville, Hayley Raso and Eveliina Summanen especially impressive.
But at the other end, there was no clean sheet for Eleanor Heeps. She was given her first WSL start in the absence of Spurs’ first-choice keeper Becky Spencer and loanee Katelin Talbert apparently out of favour. In only her second competitive game there was no shame in being beaten by Sara Holmgaard’s fine finish. The swift counter-attack that led up to Everton’s goal was the type of move that Spurs are going to be vulnerable to when they push their full-backs up high and play the “brave” football their manager wants them to. But it does mean that it has now been eight league games without a clean sheet.
Oroz’s return
Midfielder Maite Oroz was Spurs’ big summer signing from Real Madrid, but she has been injured since early October. Without her, the absence of last season’s creative stars Grace Clinton, Celin Bizet (now at Manchester United) and Kit Graham (injured) was glaring.
Oroz’s return against Everton on 61 minutes was very welcome. In her first competitive half-hour she was not quite the metronome she had been in those early games – it will undoubtedly take time – but her presence alongside Summanen meant Dew Spence was freed to play the No 10 role and with that the team’s ball progression instantly looked more dangerous.
Notably, with Oroz on the pitch Spurs’ midfield, wings and defence included the same players as Vilahamn selected to start the first three games of the season – before injuries to Oroz and Raso and consecutive big losses to top four teams. As such it felt like a bit of a restart.
Squeaking parts
There are still aspects of the team that are not running entirely smoothly. Clare Hunt had an impressive start to the season but wobbled against first Manchester City and then Arsenal and lost her spot first to Luana Bühler and then Amy James-Turner. With neither available for this game and after a good international break, Hunt was back partnering Molly Bartrip (who alongside Neville has played every minute of every game so far).
Hunt displayed her aerial ability – with England’s goal coming after Brosnan parried Hunt’s headed attempt. But the Australian still looks a little slow in making on-the-ball decisions while playing out and once Bühler and James-Turner are back it is not clear who will be the first-choice central defensive pairing.
In attack, Martha Thomas worked hard off the ball and was effective in the press but is still yet to score. Jessica Naz and Raso, Vilahamn’s preferred wingers, have not found the net in the league since the opening day (nor have the players brought on as substitute wingers – Matilda Vinberg, Anna Csiki, Lenna Gunning-Williams). More positively, England fluffed a couple of great chances but then got a brace, and reminded us of her rare ability to be in the right place to bundle the ball across the line.
Goal rhythms
This season Spurs have scored all their goals in the second, fourth and sixth fifteen-minute blocks. Conversely, they have conceded in every block but been most vulnerable in the first, third and fifth fifteen-minute period. This game was no exception with goals coming in the second fifteen (25th minute) and fourth (48th minute), while the conceded goal came in the third period (40 minutes). While all games ebb and flow and teams go through periods of greater or lesser control, such a pronounced and consistent pattern is unusual.
One pattern-breaking positive was that this was only the third WSL game in which Spurs scored first. Less pattern-breaking but still a positive – Spurs came out for the second half with renewed energy and pushed forward, winning a penalty. The problem is that this was needed and that they were (again) unable to carry what would have been a deserved advantage into half-time.
What they did better in this game was manage the back-end of the game. Despite looking vulnerable at around the 70th minute, Spurs regained composure and controlled the final minutes of the game well, culminating with Spence, Vinberg and Amanda Nildén adroitly playing the ball around the corner flag.
Perfectly mid-table?
With one game until the winter break and notwithstanding some high-highs and low-lows, what stands out is how perfectly mid-table Spurs have been so far. They have lost heavily to top four teams (Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United), been very unlucky to lose to Liverpool (currently seventh) and have beaten all the teams in the bottom five they have faced except Villa, against whom they drew before beating them in the League Cup. With Brighton (fifth) and Leicester (11th) still to play, that is remarkably consistent form.
Next Saturday, Spurs take on Brighton away. This is an especially intriguing match-up. In recent seasons Spurs have notched up big wins on the South Coast. But this season Brighton are that team: the ‘over performers’. Like Liverpool last season, Villa the season before and Spurs the season before that, Brighton have been catching attention for their results and performances. Sitting one place but six points ahead of Tottenham this will test whether Spurs – with Oroz back in the squad – are able to play creative football against a well organised and talented team. That game will be a sign of whether Spurs can play for more than just mid-table this season.
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Was discussing Spurs' Jan transfers....Chloe Kelly perhaps? Some issue clearly at Man City and if she wants to make the Euro's she's likely going to need a move. A return to the Gunners prob isnt the right fit and the same with a Chelsea move.....