#TOTCRY for Help
I know every fanbase thinks their club is cursed, but I don't know how else to describe all three of our creative attacking midfielder options going down with season-ending injuries in the weeks leading up to a European final. It's just not fair!
But we must persevere. Ange Postecoglou has some tough selection decisions to make for the Europa League final now. However, we still have one more Premier League match to suffer through in the meantime—hopefully in less of a literal sense this Friday.
In this issue: Everton recap | Crystal Palace recap | Previewing Aston Villa | News from around the Lane | Pub chat
Spurs Women have closed the door on the 2024/25 season, and I think we're all pretty relieved to see it end. It was not a good campaign. I'll have a standalone issue out sometime soon to recap the season in full (probably after the Men's final, since it's difficult to find headspace for anything else this week), so keep your eyes peeled.
It was a fairly eventful news week, as it happened, so read on for a roundup of everything that's been going on at the club, in the loan sphere, and for the leagues at large. I have a special pub chat section for the latter, because y'all know I love nothing more than a good rant about brand design and the WSL helpfully provided me with an outlet.
WSL Matchday 22 recap | Everton 1 - 1 Tottenham
Sarri 11' | Spence 30'
It's been a strange experience watching Spurs Women over the last few weeks. The performances have markedly improved compared to the mid-season doldrums, but the results do not reflect the effort. That was still the case on the final matchday, with a disappointing 1-1 draw to end the season on a lackluster note.
The stalemate came about from a Veatriki Sarri free kick that Lize Kop got hands to but couldn't save, and a rebound strike from Drew Spence—a rare case of getting one over on Courtney Brosnan. Jess Naz had a decent opportunity to find a game-winner, but her bad luck in front of goal this season continued.
There are some interesting (not always in a good way) stats to pick out from this one, so after a quick rundown of the starting lineup and substitutions and my player of the match pick, I'm going to skip straight into notable & quotable.
Starting XI:
There was some hope that Maite Oroz would finally get to feature in the position of her kit number, but alas, it was Drew Spence in the playmaker role again. That's not necessarily a complaint, since Spence is often one of the few high performers in any given game and indeed was the only one to score here, but there's a lot of curiosity to see what new dimensions Oroz could bring to the role. We'll have to wait till next season.
Otherwise, the only real surprise was Amanda Nildén coming back into the starting lineup to replace Ash Neville at left fullback. If that was a response to Neville's penalty concession in the previous game, it felt a bit harsh by Robert Vilahamn. But now I'm going to be harsh myself and say that Nildén seems to have gone backward in her development this season and certainly doesn't have as good of a linkup on that flank with Jess Naz at the winger position as Neville does. If both players are at the club next season, I would expect to see them continue to trade starts, though, since Ella Morris has (deservedly) locked down the right fullback spot.
Neville did come on as a substitute alongside Charli Grant, who has lately been played at winger more so than fullback. Martha Thomas also made an appearance and wasn't able to break her season-long goal drought in the league; she scored just once in all competitions with a goal in the League Cup quarter-final, which we lost to West Ham. The final two subs were Lenna Gunning-Williams getting her obligatory five minutes or less + stoppage, and Olga Ahtinen in what could end up being a farewell appearance—many fans noted on social media how emotional she was after the game, and she's had very limited game time in her second season at the club.
SAtP Player of the Match: Drew Spence
Look, she scored a goal, which we should never take for granted with this team.
Plus, Drew has gone quietly about her business and was never the issue this season, perhaps with the exception of the games where she was visibly fatigued (but that's more of a manager issue). I wish Vilahamn had been more cautious with her minutes so that she could be even more impactful, but at the same time, her heavy usage is proof that she was one of the players he trusted most. It's also true that her experience is invaluable.
Notable & quotable:
• Molly Bartrip was our ironwoman this season, playing every minute of every Women's Super League game. She is the only player to have achieved this feat for Spurs in our WSL era, also doing so in her debut season for the club.
• Jess Naz and Martha Thomas both featured in every WSL game this season, but did not play full minutes in the competition as Bartrip did.
• With the draw, we ended the season at 20 points and in 11th place on goal difference—our worst-ever finish in the WSL.
• One of the contributing factors to that poor standing was having the second-worst goal difference in the league. We also had the joint-worst goals against mark, with 44 goals conceded (tied with Aston Villa, only above relegated Crystal Palace).
• We did not have an assisted goal in the last three matches of the league campaign.
• This was the most yellow cards we picked up in a single WSL match this season, with six; Ella Morris was given her first yellow card.
• Robert Vilahamn was honest about the failures of the season yet hopeful for the next, despite the multiple reports that the club is considering sacking him.
We can summarise the season as it has ended and it’s quiet easy to see where we need to improve but, on the other hand, you also see how we stick to a plan, how we play and how we are dominant in games and phases of the game. But we need to get better, we need to get sharper as we want to win these games and be much higher up in the table.
I mean, it’s a lot of stuff, on and off the pitch, leadership from me, the players, how we can take the next step, how we can be more clinical and how we can take the next steps, so it’s going to be a long summer where we will make sure we have great discussions on how we’re going to improve and, from that, we’re going to come back very strong next season.
• Captain Beth England was less positive but made sure to stress her appreciation of the fan support during the winless stretch since January:
There’s no sugarcoating this season, I think we have picked up one or two wins since Christmas. We had such a flying start in the first half of the season, I think it’s just disappointing and I know we have more, but we can’t change that now, we fought to the very end.
If anything, I would like to say a huge thank you to the fans who have been continuously travelling, supporting us and chanting our names because, without them, we can’t be the best versions of ourselves so, for that, I’m very thankful and appreciative of the great following for this football club.
She also alluded to things being difficult behind the scenes:
We had to show so much resilience this season and it’s just not on the pitch, but also off the pitch. There’s a lot of people fighting individual battles and, we do have to remember as humans, we do go through a lot, it has been a tough season.
PL Matchday 36 recap | Tottenham 0 - 2 Crystal Palace
I already alluded to it at the beginning of the issue, so let's just get it out there in the open: Dejan Kulusevski picked up a patella injury in this match, and the club announced on Wednesday that he'd had surgery, ending his season just a week before the Europa League final. He's expected to be out for several months and might even miss the start of the 2025/26 season. As ever, football is a cruel sport, but it's been particularly cruel to Kulusevski this season.
His injury would normally be a big loss for a cup final, but it's doubly troublesome considering that we've already lost James Maddison and Lucas Bergvall to injuries earlier in the run-up. Our remaining midfielders have occasional bursts of creativity, but it's not a core part of their game (Pape Sarr, Rodrigo Bentancur, and Yves Bissouma), while the other is too inexperienced to be trusted in an unfamiliar role for such an important game (Archie Gray). We've gone from being overwhelmed by the sheer number of injuries in the squad to hindered by a surplus of injuries in one specific position. It's much easier to compensate for the former than the latter.
I won't get into all the possible permutations of how Ange Postecoglou could deal with the midfield trio's absence in the big game right now, but it will definitely be a topic for the match preview next week.
Instead, let's go with another abbreviated recap for the loss to Palace; I don't think it's worth any of our time to dwell too long on this one.
Starting XI:
It would be easy to criticize Postecoglou for playing Kulusevski in the first place, but we all knew he needed at least some minutes before the final, having come back from another injury recently and still looking rusty at times. So it is what it is, just bad luck, something we seem to have plenty of as a club this season.
Antonín Kinský's inclusion was a pleasant surprise. While not exactly a "kid" in the squad, it couldn't hurt to give him some more developmental game time in this match that didn't have any real stakes for Spurs. I'll be honest, I've already repressed the knowledge of how the two goal concessions happened (both scored by Eberechi Eze), but I don't recall him being directly responsible for either goal. He certainly doesn't lack the confidence to instruct his teammates and attempt (key word) to organize the defensive line.
Otherwise, this was mostly another case of giving "A team" starters a rest (except for Pedro Porro and Bentancur).
SAtP Player of the Match: Mathys Tel
He seems to be one of the few players from the so-called "B team" actively trying to force his way into contention to start in the final, though Mikey Moore did make a good case for coming off the bench in his equally encouraging substitute performance.
Notable & quotable:
• Son Heung-min made his first appearance since April 10, which came in the Europa League quarter-final first leg against Eintracht Frankfurt. He played just over 30 minutes against Palace.
• Strangely, the club just now recognized Cristian Romero for making his 100th Premier League appearance... four PL fixtures ago against Nottingham Forest. Likewise for Pedro Porro making his 100th overall appearance for Spurs in the same game. Belated congrats to Cuti and Pedro!
• This was the eighth time we've been held scoreless in a PL match this season—and the second time against Crystal Palace.
• This was the first-ever win at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for Palace and the first time Palace have completed the league double over Spurs in the PL.
• Postecoglou remarked on the tricky balance of rest vs preparation ahead of the final:
We’ve got to make sure we give the guys the best chance in terms of preparation. I think today was a missed opportunity, because guys had the opportunity to put their case forward. Now, we have 10 days to make sure the whole group is ready to go.
And I have to agree with him on this assessment of how the heavy rotation affected the performance:
That explains some of it but not all of it. I still felt we should have been better than we were today. So I can't totally discount the performance today on the fact I've made a number of changes. We should have still been able to perform better than what we did.
Previewing PL Matchday 37 — Aston Villa
This match presents an interesting conundrum for Ange Postecoglou. Does he start most of the presumed starters for the Europa League final to ensure they are in form for the most important game of the season, or does he persist with the rotated side we've been seeing for the last several league games?
If he takes the former tack, it gives him an opportunity to test drive his answer to the attacking midfielder question—which could involve changing the formation entirely. Ironically, we should all be eagerly anticipating the lineup announcement for this otherwise meaningless fixture because it could give some clues as to Postecoglou's strategy for the final.
One player who Postecoglou has guaranteed will play against Aston Villa is Son Heung-min, though he wouldn't confirm if it would be as a starter or not, saying instead that he will play "at least half the game."
We also learned this week that two fringe players, Timo Werner and Dane Scarlett, are both ruled out of selection due to hamstring and groin injuries, respectively. Even though rotation has been the name of the game for several weeks, Postecoglou has nevertheless stuck to a core of players, and those two weren't likely to feature anyway.
Villa have a trio of absences confirmed, with Marcus Rashford and Youri Tielemans both injured and Jacob Ramsey suspended after picking up a second yellow card in their previous match against Bournemouth.
While Spurs don't have much to play for in this game (besides maintaining match fitness ahead of the final), Villa will be very motivated to get the win as they are still fighting to make it into the expanded Champions League qualification berth. They are currently tied on points with Chelsea for the fifth and final spot, but trail far behind the Blues on goal difference.
Frankly, this is the last team we'd want to be playing right before the final, since they are known for their physicality. But it's another obstacle the team will simply have to get through, hopefully with minimal damage to squad availability.
News from around the Lane
There's a lot to cover this week, so I'm going to break it down by team.
Spurs Women
• Ella Morris received her first call-up to the England senior team for the upcoming Nations League group stage conclusion. Morris expressed surprise at the call-up despite her objectively strong performances of late for Spurs:
With the run of games I had, I felt I done quite well, but I could have never expected this so it’s quite an honour.
This is a great opportunity for Ella to put herself into contention for a spot in the Euro 2025 squad. Unfortunately, Jess Naz did not get called up to the Nations League camp and is now looking like an outside chance for inclusion in the summer tournament.
• Bethany England was honored as the Women's team representative for the PFA Community Champion awards. This is her second year in a row earning the distinction.
Spurs Men
• Sticking with the PFA Community Champion awards, Dominic Solanke won the honor for the Men's team.
• Son Heung-min has won the Goal of the Season award voted for by the Official Supporters' Clubs for his Olimpico against Manchester United in the League Cup quarter-final. Hopefully that's an auspicious sign as we prepare to face United again in the Europa League final!
• Following in the footsteps of his captain, Lucas Bergvall has won all three club Player of the Season awards, voted for by the OSC, One Hotspur Members, and One Hotspur Juniors. Congrats to Lucas for the clean sweep!
Men's Academy
• The U18s finished their season with a 1-0 loss at West Bromwich Albion to complete a 7th place finish.
• Jun'ai Byfield, Luca Williams-Barnett, and Malachi Hardy have all been selected to play for England at the U17 Euros, while Leon Myrtaj was called up by tournament hosts Albania.
• Alasdair Gold is reporting that Tyrese Hall will be called up to the Jamaica senior team for the Unity Cup, although the official squad list has not yet been released. The JFF President, Michael Ricketts, commented on the unique friendly tournament, returning after a 21-year hiatus.:
Outside of North America, the UK has the largest Jamaican diaspora and we are elated and thrilled to participate in this competition. We are eagerly looking forward to seeing the sea of black, green and gold across London when Jamaica comes into town. It certainly will be a special event.
Sounds like a great way for Tyrese to make his Jamaica debut! It's being hosted at Brentford's G-Tech stadium if anyone local wants to go out and support him, presuming he does make the cut for the squad.
• Josh Keeley received his first call-up to the Ireland senior team.
• It's been a big week for Keeley, as he helped his loan club Leyton Orient to the League One playoff final alongside fellow Spurs loanee Jamie Donley. Keeley made a save in the penalty shootout and forced a miss to help the O's advance.
Ange Postecoglou commented on the loan duo's chance at promotion glory:
You know, when players go on loan, obviously the key is for them to get match minutes and development, I think both of those guys have, but it's even better if they're part of something that could be special for them in terms of success. I think that helps as well in terms of their own self-belief and and being part of something successful. So yes, super pleased with them, it'll be a great occasion and hopefully they get through.
Women's Academy
• The club has a thorough recap of the Women's Academy teams' season, with highlights including Zara Bailey's senior debut, the U21s run to the Capital Cup final, and the U16s winning the Professional Game Academy Champions Trophy. On a downer note, the top goal-scorer for the U21s has already left the club to join RB Leipzig.
General women's football news
I'm tacking on a non-Spurs category this week for some relevant news across the world of English women's football. The news is not slowing down despite the end of the league seasons!
• Chelsea Women became the first team to remain undefeated across a 22-game WSL season.
• London City Lionesses have become the first fully independent women's club (i.e. not associated with any men's team) to gain promotion to the top-flight WSL. I learned this fact from an article about the Lionesses' Megan Campbell setting the Guinness World Record for longest throw-in by a woman. Longtime Spurs Women fans may recall Campbell from her last stint in the WSL with Liverpool, so we can look forward to being terrorized by her throw-ins again!
• I was relieved to hear that the organization formerly known as the WPLL (more on that in a minute) has abandoned the plan to temporarily pause relegation in 2026 to expand the leagues. I would like to think that the significant fan protest against this idea made a difference, but it sounds like opposition from the FA and Sky Sports was the bigger deterrent.
• Blackburn Rovers may choose not to meet the newly increased Women's Championship standards and would have their license revoked. If they do indeed withdraw from the second tier, the BBC has reported that relegated Sheffield United may be reinstated.
Blackburn player Niamh Murphy expressed her frustration over the situation:
Whilst this season may not look successful to others, we have once again avoided relegation despite having the smallest budget. This is a huge success and a credit to the women’s players and staff. This group has worked relentlessly hard all season for so little reward. We all earn less than a livable wage, with many players having to live away from home whilst also having to work other jobs to survive, and this is what we get in return.
I agree with this comment from Girls on the Ball:
Personally feel the implementation of enhanced minimum requirements in the WSL2 feels necessary for the health and safety of the players + their development, as well as the continued development of the game. For too long, some clubs have got away with paying lip service to the sport. Players put everything on the line to be able to perform week in, week out. Their whole lifestyle is geared to being the best athlete they can be, despite injuries and everything else. It angers me so much that some clubs and their owners expect the performance but deny them the proper investment and resources to allow them to perform to the best of their abilities.
• In more positive news, Goodison Park is being spared demolition and will now be the permanent home ground for Everton Women, though the Guardian article on the move noted that the capacity will be scaled back in the near future.
Pub chat: WSL rebrand
The formerly named WPLL announced a slate of changes to the naming and branding of women's football in England, including its own company name. Here's a quick rundown of the updates:
- The WPLL, the company that oversees the top two flights, becomes Women's Super League Football (WSL Football for short).
- The second-tier competition, formerly the Women's Championship, will now be known as the WSL 2 again, the original name when it launched in 2017.
- Both tiers have new visual identities and logos.
The newly dubbed WSL Football worked with the creative agency Anomaly to create the new branding, "born from the movement of female footballers."
I have thoughts.
First, the frequent usage of the word "female" in the marketing copy around this rebrand has triggered my existing concern that the powers-that-be at WSL Football are working from a gender essentialist point of view that is only going to limit the potential of women's football in England going forward. It also doesn't feel like a coincidence coming so soon after the FA announced it was implementing a wholesale ban on trans women participating in its leagues—including grassroots football. This ruling has already emboldened transphobia across the women's football pyramid and is truly a solution in search of a problem. So perhaps describing the athletes of the WSL and WSL2 as "females", like many a detractor of women's football would ("females should get back in the kitchen," "the female game is slow and boring," etc.), isn't a smart way to set the tone for this rebrand.
On a similar note, the promotional materials for the new visual identity have evoked a very cliché, outdated approach to describing women's sport. I know the '90s are back in style, but I don't think we needed to see the tired "girlboss" movement evolve into a retread of '90s "grrl power".
I highly recommend reading Megan Feringa's skewering take on the rebrand over at the Athletic (also available here without a paywall).
Megan Feringa
Beyond noting that the new wave-like logo isn't going to help the current SEO debacle with the WSL acronym (go on, Google just "WSL" and see what comes up), Feringa observes that this unasked-for and unneeded rebrand took precedence over improving the actual football on a standards level.
Rather than addressing the fundamental issues at play in the top two tiers, the spangle and tinsel come first. Football as tableau first, sport second... What if the people don’t actually want football-adjacent? What if they just want football?
It's clear WSL Football is aiming to appeal to the so-called Taylor Swift generation of fans with these pithy slogans and garish color schemes, but what is being done to cater to the professionals of the game? I don't know how much they paid Anomaly for this underwhelming rebrand, but surely that money would have been better spent on referee training & professionalization, coaching education, and broadcast quality improvements.
All the set dressing in the world isn't going to change the perception of the product on the pitch, nor does it matter much to the existing, loyal fans of the WSL and WSL 2. We want to see our favorite players protected by proper officiating, enjoy useful replay angles & knowledgeable commentary on the broadcasts, and witness a bridging of the gap in quality in the leagues. These aren't unreasonable asks, but they do require time, effort, and investment that thus far have been lacking from WSL Football. I will allow a small caveat that this was only the first season for the organization to be in charge, but the clock is nevertheless ticking.
And as I have remarked many times, the WSL already lags behind the NWSL in terms of the actual matchday and broadcast experiences, at least from my perspective as a fan who avidly watches both leagues. The WSL's competitive advantage in recruiting talent with the possibility of playing in the Champions League won't last forever now that Concacaf has a similar competition of its own and the Northern Super League is off to an exciting start in Canada as Liga MX Femenil continues to grow (especially in parity, with a brand-new champion this week, Pachuca). If WSL Football doesn't take seriously the task of tangibly improving the football itself, they will be left ruing the focus on aesthetics as other leagues overtake them.
My final word: the branding is just ugly. It's not to my taste, anyway. I'm curious to hear y'all's thoughts!
All right, one more Men's match before the Big One. We can get through this. Hopefully all of the players do, too.
COYS
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