Another Season in the Rearview

And not a moment too soon, am I right?

There are two final matches to recap, a tiny bit of transfer rumor news, and an update on Spurs Across the Pond's summer programming.

In this issue:  West Ham recap | Leeds recap | Transfer grapevine | Summer programming note

West Ham 2 - 2 Tottenham

Full disclosure, I had the last Spurs Women match on my second screen since the result wasn't super important and the Köln vs Bayern Munich match on my main screen since it was a literal title decider. So apologies for dropping the ball on the Women's side this week, but I fully admit I was a distracted viewer. It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize that West Ham's second goal was an own goal by Spurs, for example.

So for a quick recap, this game encapsulated many of our strengths and weaknesses from the season overall. We've grown increasingly adept at scoring from offensive set pieces, but can't clean up the mistakes when defending them. We also continue to struggle with getting enough defensive cover from the midfield and attackers to make up for the lack of chemistry in the backline this season. That was on full display with Celin Bizet getting mixed up on a back pass from Asmita Ale on the first West Ham goal, as well as Kit Graham's misplaced headed clearance for the own goal (which came about after Graham herself conceded a free kick). Becky Spencer made a few key saves, but was left out to dry on both of the West Ham goals by her teammates' poor positioning.

Rosella Ayane has been a polarizing figure in the squad all season, so naturally, she contributed two beautiful assists in the final match, both for Beth England to convert with headers. On the first goal, which originated from a free kick, several Spurs players made deft one-touch movements to keep the ball moving and prevent West Ham's defense from settling. The second goal began with a nice interplay between England and her former Chelsea teammate, Drew Spence, and also involved Graham, who performed much better from an attacking sense in this game than she did in her defensive duties. I was struck by how often we see England involved in the buildup to her own goals, making her a tricky prospect for opposition defenders to deal with—there are several areas of the pitch from which she needs to be closed down to prevent her from making one of her trademark runs into the box. I was only disappointed she couldn't pull off a hat trick to end the season on the highest note.

We may have been seeing several of these players for the last time, but since Spurs have yet to announce their list of released players, we don't know for sure. But I think we saw enough glimpses of promise in the last couple of games to feel optimistic about next season with the right manager in place and the right recruitment. Those are big ifs when it comes to Spurs, of course.

Some Spurs Women players will be heading to the World Cup later this summer, but the rest of the squad will have a good break to rest and get healthy before the pre-season begins. We have a long wait until the next WSL season starts on the weekend of September 29-October 1.

Leeds United 1 - 4 Tottenham

I did watch the Men's game pretty closely, if reluctantly. I can't remember ever feeling this ambivalent about the final matchday since I became a Spurs supporter. There was technically still something to play for—Europa Conference League qualification—but we needed some help from Aston Villa, which we didn't end up getting. So next season will be a solely domestic campaign. There are pros and cons to that reality, but whether we are able to take advantage of the positives is dependent on how the summer manager search and transfer recruitment goes.

I kept finding myself thinking that the whole squad was looking lethargic during this game, but have since heard a few people remarking on the poor quality of the pitch at Elland Road (particularly the dryness of the grass), so perhaps that was the issue.

Harry Kane got us off to a blistering start on the scoreline at least. He didn't need 90 minutes to score, just 90 seconds, calmly striking a close-range assist from Son Heung-min. The midfield three of Oliver Skipp, Yves Bissouma, and Pedro Porro were all involved in the buildup as well. The goal was checked for an offside run by Porro, but the goal stood.

Shortly after halftime, Kane did well to cleverly evade a couple of Leeds players after receiving a lofted ball from Ben Davies, then put in a defense-splitting pass of his own to Porro (which admittedly took a deflection off Pascal Struijk). Porro allowed the ball to roll a few paces before making his first touch, a strong shot past Leeds' keeper Joel Robles.

Scoring within two minutes from the start of each half had the result feeling rather comfortable for Spurs. Jack Harrison slightly altered the equation with his 67th-minute goal, but Kane scored in the 69th to restore Spurs' two-goal margin. Porro returned the earlier favor by assisting Kane after Bissouma smartly flicked on an interception. Porro had acres of space to drive forward in, as did Kane when he received the pass. Robles had no chance against a striker of Kane's quality in that scenario.

Time for another edition of Harry Kane Record Watch:

• first player to score 30 goals in two different PL seasons (I believe this is only for a 38-match season)

• first player to score on 10 separate final matchdays

• shares the joint record with Andy Cole for scoring in 26 different matchdays in a single season

Leeds' attack tried to get something going despite the increased deficit, but their defense continually let them down, not least on the final Spurs goal of the match. Lucas Moura, who had subbed on just after stoppage time began, scored in the 90+5th minute after dribbling a third of the length of the field. He was asking for the ball, and Pape Sarr (who also appeared as a substitute earlier in the match) obliged him.

The commentator said that Lucas appeared to "weave with wonder," but honestly, the only wonder is that Leeds' defense didn't stop him. In fairness to the commentator, that turn of phrase had been preceded by a stark recognition of how poor the defense was on that goal concession. They were all out of hope and all out of effort.

I had complicated feelings about this goal. It's no secret that I dislike Lucas for his politics, but it was hard not to feel happy for him at this moment because of the sheer output of emotion. His teammates were clearly thrilled for him, and by all accounts, he is quite a lovely, kind person on an individual basis. I just wish he could transfer some of that affection and care for his teammates and other people at the club into caring about the people of his country in a more meaningful way, one that does not include backing a fascist politician like Jair Bolsonaro. Anyway...

We'll let him have this one last fairytale moment in his last appearance for the club. Adeus, Lucas.

Besides Kane scoring his record-breaking goals and Lucas finishing his Spurs career with a bang, two other players achieved an important career milestone with their Premier League debuts.

Matthew Craig got a very decent run-out for his first PL appearance, playing from the 77th minute on. He wasn't necessarily flashy, but he was solid, which is probably the most you can ask for from a youngster making their debut in such a raucous environment as Elland Road. Some fans may remember that his identical twin brother, Michael, was also at Tottenham's academy previously, but he has since moved on to sign with Reading after trialing at Southampton. Matthew has featured for Scotland at youth level.

George Abbott only came on for the period of stoppage time, but hey, it counts. Abbott was part of the Spurs U18 team that recently won the Premier League U18 cup. For him to be making his PL debut at just 17 years old speaks highly of his prospects.  

One of the downsides to not qualifying for the Europa Conference League is that we're unlikely to see players like Craig and Abbott get more chances for senior football any time soon, except for perhaps in the early rounds of the domestic cups.

It already promises to be a long summer full of manager links and transfer rumors, but at least we only have to hear about how the team is struggling to find an identity, not watch it play out on the pitch every week. Is that too harsh? Well, it is what it is. I am at least glad that we ended the season on a high note with a win even if the result didn't actually change anything in the standings.

Transfer grapevine

Yes, it's that time of year again. We heard the first credible transfer rumor about the Women's team today, and unfortunately, it was regarding outgoings.

According to Emma Sanders, who is generally reliable, "several players [are] set to leave Spurs this summer on the expiration of their contracts" and Kerys Harrop and Esther Morgan are likely to be included. She also reported that Mana Iwabuch is "looking at options."

Morgan is probably the least surprising of those three potential outgoings. The club has sent her out on loans the past two seasons, and only to Championship clubs in the most recent season. It seems like the club just doesn't see her being a regular part of the first team, and it's a bit of a shame because besides being a promising young talent, she is also a Spurs fan herself.

I had kind of expected Spurs to keep Harrop for at least one more season as we attempt to overhaul the defense; her experience and leadership would still make her a valuable squad member if not a regular starter anymore. However, if this means the club has some legitimate transfer targets already in place, her exit would make more sense to me. I just hope on a personal level that if Harrop does leave, it's a decision she feels good about. She's been a consummate professional and an important mentor to younger players in her time at the club.

As for Iwabuchi, she was only on loan from Arsenal, so there was always a strong possibility she'd only be at Spurs for half a season. While she demonstrated her strong technical skills and ability to progress the ball many times during her ten appearances (and just five starts), she only contributed one assist in the end and seemed to struggle with her fitness for most of the loan spell. Since that's been a concern for our squad across the board this season it might be wise to make a clean break and not pursue her on a permanent basis.

While I would love to hear some transfer news on incoming players soon, it's more vital for the club to secure a new manager first and foremost. So far, we haven't heard a peep on that subject—except for interim manager Vicky Jepson admitting that she hasn't been involved at all in player contract or transfer discussions, and therefore seems unlikely to be a candidate for the job. Thankful as I am to Jepson for helping the club avoid relegation, I think that's probably the right decision by the club.

Unlike on the Men's side, we don't know about any pre-season fixtures for the Women's team, but I would still like to see the majority of the squad turnover happen early enough for most of the new players to settle in well before pre-season begins in earnest.

Some key dates for your calendar:

PL transfer window — Wednesday, June 14 to Saturday, September 1

WSL transfer window — Monday, June 26 to Thursday, September 14

I really don't care to talk about Mauricio Pochettino becoming the new Chelsea manager much more than I already have, so I will simply acknowledge that it has now been officially confirmed. Thank god the announcement didn't include a quote from Poch himself. I will be studiously avoiding all of his press conferences next season.

Chelsea is like a siren at sea, and he's not the first person to heed the call, nor will he be the last. Just don't ask me to be sympathetic when it inevitably ends in ruin!

A note on summer programming

Spurs Across the Pond will still be going strong throughout the off-season, but perhaps with less regularity. It's been a long, at times painful season and I definitely need some downtime. As much as I love writing this newsletter, it is a sizable time commitment. I have a novel second draft I'm supposed to be finishing!

So you can expect fewer issues than usual during the coming months, and there might not be a set schedule. I won't pop in to write about every single transfer rumor (or confirmation) as it happens, but will instead wait to do a roundup every couple of weeks or so. The only exceptions will be for major news, like when either of our teams finally gets a new manager, or if there are any particularly shocking transfers (I'm not going to say his name because I don't want to accidentally manifest it, but I really don't think the one everyone is dreading is going to happen, for the record).

I'll also do my best to cover pre-season games when they are streamed—not always the case for the Women's team, sadly.

Otherwise, I have some fun topics planned for monthly bonus issues. Speaking of bonus issues, I did end up writing two last month so I'm going to let myself off the hook for May. Bonus issues will be going back behind the paywall next month, so please consider supporting the newsletter with a monthly membership.

Coming up first this off-season will be my usual end-of-season recap issue. It's a real bumper special. Keep an eye out for it in your inboxes soon!

I hope y'all get some good rest this off-season, too. Of course, if you're stateside like me you'll probably be watching an awful lot of soccer anyway with our domestic leagues in full swing, and then there's the Women's World Cup for everyone to enjoy later in the summer. There will be a few Spurs Women players at the tournament, so I'll be sure to cover that as well.

As ever,

COYS

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