Welcome to the new look, creative Spurs Women

By Rachel Cohen.

We have finally got a Spurs Women team that is fun to watch. And that is a novelty.

Sure, it is only two games in, and we’ve had one win and one loss. But the loss was close (2-1) and against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and the win, against Bristol (3-1), was relatively emphatic. At least in comparison to the Spurs of recent times. For measure, last season in the WSL Spurs scored three or more goals in a game only three times and just twice won a game by a two-goal margin. Instead, through much of the 2022/23 season many of us supporters watched on, wondering why our players were second to every ball, crumbled under a challenge, passed as if they’d never before met one another, and were somehow slower, smaller and less fit than their opponents, even if objectively they were not. That is why on Sunday, watching the same players winning balls, pinging one-touch passes around midfield and piling into the box to join an attack is such a rare treat.

Below I pick out four things to get excited about in Robert Vilahamn’s new look Spurs. And, just for balance, three aspects of the team that remain works in progress.

Reasons to be cheerful

1. The Finnish double pivot. Olga Ahtinen joined the club this summer and has, with her compatriot, Eveliina Summanen, created a midfield partnership that is already purring – adding creativity and defensive solidity. In the last two games the two have taken turns to get forward or stay back. Ahtinen is perhaps the more obvious leader – regularly instructing other players about where to play the ball. But Summanen’s passing vision seems to have moved up a level since last season. Over and again she, along with Ahtinen were finding slivers of space through a seemingly congested midfield. At other times we have seen Summanen dropping back – allowing Molly Bartrip scope to carry the ball forward from centre-back. Or Ahtinen retreating to clear the ball from the box. After the game Summanen said that she and Ahtinen sometimes communicate in Finnish because it’s quicker. Whether it is the language, familiarity with one another (from their national team), or a complementarity of styles, they are clearly on the same wavelength and it is working.

2. Passing from central defence. With Luana Bühler joining Molly Bartrip we now have two centre-backs who are comfortable on the ball. They are also both happy to play long balls, especially diagonals over the top. In this game Bartrip attempted eleven long balls (six were successful) and Bühler attempted five (two successful), setting up threatening attacks. Bartrip also carried the ball forward several times, making eight passes into the final third. Bühler made three. Both had a pass completion of over 92 percent. Since Vilahamn’s system pushes fullbacks relatively high it depends heavily on centre-backs, to initiate attacks and leaves them at times exposed in withstanding opposition pressing, meaning that continuing to get these performances out of Bartrip and Bühler will be essential.

3. Pressing and hustling. The energy to press is perhaps best exemplified by new signing, Martha Thomas. Across two games Thomas has scored two goals, which although very different, have in both cases involved the goalkeeper taking the final touch prior to Thomas’s ‘shot’ (in this game it was more of a block than a shot). We can describe these as goalkeeper errors, which they were, but that is to under-estimate the impact of Thomas’s harrying and pressure, which is what helps produce errors. It is also to underestimate the value of having someone in the right place and able to take advantage of errors. If Thomas has demonstrated the most tangible rewards from pressing, she has not been alone. Across the midfield and front-lines Spurs players have doubled or tripled up, regularly producing a turnover not at the first attempt but after the involvement of two or three players.

3. Familiarity. A lot has been said about our new players, with both Thomas and Ahtinen shining this game, and Grace Clinton last. But this game was also a reminder that some of our players have a longstanding familiarity with one another. This was especially apparent in the fluidity of the interchanges between Ashleigh Neville, Jessica Naz and Kit Graham in attack. Neville joined Spurs in 2017, Naz in 2018 and Graham in 2019. But both Naz and Graham have been out injured for large parts of the last few seasons. It was therefore just nice to see them on the pitch together, demonstrating their speed, ball control and creativity in making things happen.

Works in progress

1. Our full backs. Across our first two games Ashleigh Neville’s statistics have been as impressive as they often are, racking up recoveries, interceptions and dribbles. And she continues to do the little things beautifully; in the most recent game changing direction several times by playing lovely no-look passes inside to Summanen. Yet, playing at left back with Grace Clinton in front of her at left wing, Neville’s attacking flare seems somewhat muted. Against both Bristol and Chelsea she has been a frequent supplier of the ball to Clinton. Clinton has had great moments – taking the shot that rebounded for the goal against Chelsea; winning the free kick from which Summanen scored against Bristol. But, because Clinton almost always cuts inside after receiving the ball, immediately turning to face centrally she almost never passes back to Neville on the overlap. Contrast that with the two interchanges we saw between Neville and Jessica Naz, who came on as a 60^th minute substitute for Clinton, and the difference is stark.

On the right flank, the issue is different. This is the first season we have seen Angharad James at right back and it is not yet convincing that this is a permanent solution, especially against teams with more firepower than Bristol. Passing is James’ strong suit and we have to assume that this is why she has been selected ahead of Asmita Ale for Vilahamn’s dynamic set-up. But James’ defensive limitations were highlighted last week against Chelsea and with Celin Bizet in front of her she does not have the strongest defensive cover (although Olga Ahtinen, and later Ria Percival tucked inside to provide additional cover from midfield). What is clear is that opponents seem to be trying to exploit this: for two games in a row about 43 percent of opposition attacks have come down their left (our right). By contrast, in this game just 25 percent (and against Chelsea 27 percent) of attacks came down their right flank (our left).

There may not be a perfect solution. But it might be good to see Neville at right back and James (or Asmita Ale) at left back, something which would allow Neville to combine with Bizet (a player she seems to be on the same wavelength as). It may be, however, that James’ defensive limitations would be further exposed on the left. In which case, perhaps a little more game time for Naz, who has looked lively in both games after her introduction, would mean at least a half game of attacking-Neville. And perhaps the judicious use of Ale for James in games requiring more defensive grit. Or even the use of Grace Pearse, who we saw last season at right back for a few minutes.

2. Chance conversion. Against Chelsea we converted one chance in fifteen shots (11 on target): a measly six percent conversion rate. Against Bristol it initially looks better: three goals from 16 shots. But of those three goals one was a direct free kick, and Thomas’s goal was more of a block than a shot. Therefore, of the 12 attempts from open play we scored one. Part of this is that relatively few of Spurs’ shots are inside the box or from one-on-one situations. Rather there have been a lot of shots from the outer edges of crowded boxes. Moreover, during the first half of the Bristol game there seemed to be shot selection issues, with players either reluctant to take a shot, despite being in a good position, or taking one only to miscue or send the ball skywards. Hopefully, this is simply early season rustiness. Or maybe we just got too used to Beth England’s ridiculous conversion rate (England scored 12 from 26 shots last season) and will have to now dial back expectations – at least until her return from rehab. Meanwhile we can hope that Spurs players will find ways to increase the number of shots taken or to improve on the positions from which they are being taken.

3. Defending counter-attacks. With a much more attacking style Spurs look more vulnerable on the counter than we have done previously. That is perhaps inevitable. And probably a price worth paying if it brings us more exciting football. However, the precariousness of this is perhaps exacerbated by none of our backline being especially quick. Both Molly Bartrip and Luana Bühler showed that good positioning is often sufficient to make up for speed. But we were lucky that Bristol did not punish us on a few occasions. And it was noticeable once Jess Naz was on the pitch that having a player with pace can make a difference in terms of defensive cover. There is not an obvious solution to this one. But it will be something to watch out for over the next few games.

The above are first impressions – based on two 90 minute games. And it may be that they prove entirely wrong after the evidence of more games.

Whatever happens, as a Spurs supporter, I’m excited to find out what the season has to offer for this team. And with new players still to take to the field (most obviously Zhang Linyan, who joined up with Spurs this weekend), there’s a lot to look forward to.

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Rachel Cohen is on twitter @spurswomenblog

For data on Spurs Women’s most recent game see Whoscored.com.

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