Playing with Pride

This photo of Beth England in the Pride captain's armband was the only appropriate header choice for today's issue.

I have a lot to say below about the debacle that involved the moving of the Progress Pride Flag at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium ahead of the Slavia Prague game, but first, we need to rewind to the games from the weekend prior. I had planned to have those recaps out ahead of the Champions League game on Tuesday, but that obviously didn't happen. I'm going to revert to the old "top 3 things" format for the sake of brevity, much as I hate to minimize such satisfying games.

In this issue: Brentford recap | Aston Villa recap | Slavia Prague recap | News from around the Lane | Pub chat

The big talking point for this coming weekend's fixtures is the first of two back-to-back games against Manchester United for Spurs Women. This one marks the final match of the first half of the Women's Super League season, and then next weekend we face them again in the League Cup quarter-finals. Both are away fixtures at a ground we don't typically have much success at, so it's definitely crunch time.

Spurs Men will also be in league play, traveling to take on Nottingham Forest. This game could have been equally full of narrative as the Women's match, but in the space of the first few months of the season, both former Spurs managers who had been at Nottingham Forest have since been sacked and replaced by the ultimate last-ditch option, Sean Dyche. Since Forest are still very much involved in the relegation scrap, it will be a contentious match, but not from a personal perspective for Spurs.

PL MD 15 | Tottenham 2 - 0 Brentford

Richarlison 25', Simons 43'

This was the match that was supposed to be fraught with intrigue, as we took on Thomas Frank's old club, but it ended up feeling like a pretty routine win for Spurs in the end.

Top 3 things:

1. Richarlison continues to produce. Perhaps he's the "he only scores goals" player of this season (now that Brennan Johnson isn't getting much game time)?
2. Simons finally gets off the mark. The new #7 scored his first Spurs goal, and it's nice that it happened at a home match. He also registered the assist for Richarlison's goal, making him the clear choice for Player of the Match.
3. Gray is smoothing out the attack. The midfield has been running much more smoothly since the youngster returned to the starting lineup. He doesn't always make spectacular moves (though he has his moments of technical savvy), but his steady distribution and ability to tidy up possession empower the forwards to focus on what they do best.

Notable & quotable:

• Thomas Frank provided an injury update on Destiny Udogie after the game; the fullback will miss some time with a hamstring injury, not returning until January at the earliest.

• He also praised Xavi Simons for persisting until he finally scored his first Spurs goal:

I'm so happy on Xavi’s behalf. He's been working so hard. He's a 24-7 pro. He's so determined. He wanted it so badly.

WSL MD 10 | Tottenham 2 - 1 Aston Villa

England 85', Holdt 90+5' | Hanson 84'

I think the last time I enjoyed a Spurs Women result this much was when we knocked Manchester City out of the FA Cup on penalties. The ending to this one provoked the same combination of slight disbelief that it happened and immense pride in the players for their mentality. The disbelief is not so much because I don't think these players are capable of making comebacks or beating a team of fairly similar quality; it's more so that last season, we definitely would have lost this game, and it would have been all the more embarrassing for the fact that Aston Villa had been reduced to 10 players midway through the second half. Thank goodness we don't have to live with that regret!

Top 3 things:

1. Captain leading by example. She may have only scored the equalizer, not the game-winner, but I firmly believe we don't win this game without Beth England on the pitch. Her immediate response to going down a goal was to finesse a header into the net and get us back in the game, but also to vocally urge her teammates on to the finish. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I often wonder where this team would be if we had never signed England that one January window. Relegated, most likely.
2. Youngsters stepping up. Although they've only had one WSL start between them this season, Araya Dennis and Lenna Gunning-Williams played a key part in the late-game surge from off the bench. Both playing on the right flank, they brought a much-needed spark of energy and physicality, culminating in Gunning-Williams' resolute hold-up play to get the ball to Drew Spence for the game-winning assist for Olivia Holdt.
3. Mixed bag for Molly's first start back. Molly Bartrip got the opportunity to start for the first time this season, and while she was culpable for the conceded goal, losing out to Hanson on pace, she more than made up for it during the rest of the game, placing several key tackles and blocks to prevent Villa from scoring a decisive second goal. Those interventions kept us in the game to clear the way for Holdt's heroics at the death.

Notable & quotable:

• The game was scoreless through the first 83 minutes.

• In addition to being her first start in any competition this season, it was Molly Bartrip's first WSL appearance of the campaign.

• This is the first game in any competition that Tōko Koga has not featured in.

• Drew Spence made her 75th appearance for Spurs in all competitions.

• Olivia Holdt became the first non-British player to score two game-winning stoppage-time goals in the WSL.

• The club has sadly confirmed that Jess Naz tore her ACL and will miss the rest of the season.

• While Beth England acknowledges that it wasn't a perfect performance, she was very proud of the end result:

It was extremely disappointing to go a player up and then concede. We wanted that clean sheet—we’ve taken a lot of pride in keeping them this season—so that was frustrating. But the flip side is the response: We brought it back, got the winner right at the end, and everyone was putting their bodies on the line, blocking everything. I couldn’t be prouder of the girls for getting the three points and showing that resilience again...  It was important to make sure we weren’t sulking or accepting a defeat to a team we know we can beat.

• Martin Ho was equally moved by the comeback:

I’ve still got emotions [after the game]—lots of pride and passion for the result. There’s a bit of frustration with some of our play where we want to be better, but I understand that when you come back after an international break, you sometimes need time to find those relationships and rhythms again. But overall, with everything we’ve had thrown at us this week, the injuries and the moment we had with Jess [Naz], I thought the players’ response was good—and that shows the sign of a really good group.

Champions League MD 6 | Tottenham 3 - 0 Slavia Prague

Zima (OG) 26', Kudus (Pen) 50', Simons (Pen) 79'

There was a lot going on in the buildup to this match, from the aforementioned flag controversy to Mathys Tel being added to the Champions League squad to replace the still-injured Dominic Solanke. And of course, our beloved Son Heung-min returned to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to say... well, not really "goodbye," but more of a "bye for now."

This will always be my home. I will never forget you.

Thankfully, none of that unsettled the players, but perhaps motivated them to decisively beat Slavia Prague, and with a clean sheet to boot.

Top 3 things:

1. A healthy heap of luck. Not only did Slavia Prague suffer an own goal (and I mean suffer; it was a very unfortunate header), they also conceded two legitimate penalties to seal their loss. I still feel that we were the better team on the whole and definitely deserved the win, but they also didn't make it very hard for us.
2. Impeccable defense. From Guglielmo Vicario to the entirety of the backline, Spurs didn't give the opposition a hope of scoring. Djed Spence was arguably the best of the bunch, but Micky van de Ven also shone.
3. Utilizing the full bench. With the fixture congestion finally about to ease up a bit (if only for a few weeks), it was more important than ever for Thomas Frank to rotate in-game and ensure we don't pick up any more injuries and take full advantage of the extra rest with no more midweek games until January. And indeed, Frank used all five of his available substitutions.

Notable & quotable:

• While this wasn't the first Champions League goal for either Mohammed Kudus or Xavi Simons, they both scored their first CL goal for Spurs with a penalty each.

• Ben Davies made his first appearance of the season in any competition.

Davies is now just two games away from tying the club record for most European appearances, currently held by Harry Kane at 76 games.

• Luca Williams-Barnett and Callum Olusesi both made the matchday squad after scoring a hat trick and providing a trio of assists, respectively, in the day's earlier U19s 9-1 win over the same opponent in the UEFA Youth League.

• Spurs still maintain a perfect home record in the CL league phase this season, while extending the team's unbeaten streak in all European competitions to 23 games and counting.

• The club reached a milestone of scoring 100 goals in the Champions League—albeit with an own goal for the century mark. Kudus and Simons then added to the tally with their penalties. Ironically, our first-ever goal in the CL was also an own goal.

• In this season's league phase, we have forced three own goals so far.

• Simons commented on scoring his first Spurs goal at home:

It's always a nice feeling to score in front of the fans, and at the end, on a Champions League night, that makes it all the more special.

News from around the Lane

• Spurs Men have been drawn at home to Aston Villa for the FA Cup third round. The kickoff date and time have been confirmed for January 10 at 5:45 pm UK.

• Drew Spence has signed a new long-term contract to stay at Spurs. We don't know exactly how many seasons her contract is for, but Spence is feeling bullish on being able to contribute at a high level despite her, ahem, seniority on the team:

I’m the oldest in the team—everyone loves to remind me! But I don't feel like it, I feel the best I've ever felt in my career.

• Jun'ai Byfield has signed his first professional contract with the club, having made the senior team matchday squad several times already this season, though he's yet to make his debut.

Pub chat: Values and visibility

I was incredibly disappointed by the way the club handled Slavia Prague's request (threat??) to have the stadium's Progress Pride Flag removed from above the tunnel in the middle of the away stands.

Beyond what that flag (ever-present on home matchdays) symbolizes for LGBTQ+ inclusion in football in general, it also represents the close, respectful relationship that the Proud Lilywhites supporters association has with the club. And in many ways, the club has previously backed up its stated values of inclusion in tangible ways, both on matchdays and out in the community.

That's why the decision to bow to the pressure and move the flag for the Champions League game was so galling. We have come to expect better from Spurs, and they let us down. I will be honest, it truly affected my enjoyment of this game. It was especially frustrating timing to learn about the decision just as the buildup to the game was beginning, distracting from what should have been a purely joyous celebration of Sonny's return to the stadium.

I understand there were valid safety concerns because of the Slavia Prague away fans' reputation and history of abusive behavior. But to allow a group of bigoted away fans to dictate the terms of participation is a terrible precedent to set, not least because it diminishes all the previous progress made on making queer fans feel welcome, safe, and valued at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

And at the end of the day, I believe Spurs should have held the line that inclusion is a nonnegotiable value of the club and put the onus on UEFA to intervene by banning any away fans who cannot respect that value. Again, the late communication of the club's decision not only blindsided fans but also precluded any possibility of putting pressure on UEFA to do the right thing by making the controversy public in advance.

At the end of the day, as powerful as the flag is as a symbol, it is still just a piece of fabric that can be replaced. If the away fans wanted to make good on their bluff and destroy the flag, therefore forcing the issue with UEFA in an unavoidable way, we should have let them go for it, and then let UEFA try to weasel their way out of accountability despite blatant evidence. It's UEFA we're talking about, so I suspect they would probably still abdicate responsibility somehow, but let it be that organization's cross to bear, not Spurs'.

Instead, the bigots won and got to enjoy their day out at the best stadium in the world, and the pre-game controversy was swept under the rug—to the point that the commentators on Paramount+ were praising the away fans for their spirited display of support. It was hard to listen to that, knowing the truth of their character.

I'm glad the flag was not removed from the stadium entirely, but it was, in a literal sense, less visible. As fascist movements gain power all over the world, now is not the time to be compromising and ceding ground to the people who would like to see queer football fans pushed out of the sport entirely. And certainly not in our home!

Up next:

December 14 | Spurs Men @ Nottingham Forest
Team news — Same availability as the Slavia Prague game, with the addition of Brennan Johnson returning to the squad.

December 14 | Spurs Women @ Manchester United
Team news — Jess Naz is the only addition to the injury list from the Aston Villa game.

Okay, hopefully we are back to regularly scheduled business after this strange week in Spurs. One normal day of Tottenham Hotspur, etc.

COYS

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