Tag: Tottenham Hotspur Women

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WSL

Ashleigh Neville Still Scoring for Spurs

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Photo: Leicester City Women

Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Leicester City

12:00 KO

11th January 2026

Tottenham Hotspur

Starting XI: Kop (GK), Nildén, Gaupset, England (C), Holdt, Rybrink, Vinberg, Hunt, Spence, Summanen, Koga

Goal scorers: Neville 40’ (OG)

Subs used: Hamano 64’, Thomas 72’

Leicester City

Starting XI: Clark (GK), Kees, Tierney (C), van Egmond, Ale, Mayling, Cain, McLoughlin, O’Brien, Neville, Swaby

Subs used: Mouchon 68’, Goodwin 74’, Jansson 74’, Ayane 90+1’

Tottenham Hotspur kicked off 2026 by hosting Leicester City at home for their first WSL fixture of the year. Both sides have made some interesting signings so far this January window. Tottenham started Norwegian international Signe Gaupset, but kept the rest on the bench, including Chelsea’s Hamano who is currently with Spurs on loan. Leicester, on the other hand, made quite the statement by starting Ashleigh Neville this afternoon. Neville left Spurs to sign for Leicester just three days ago, after over a decade at the club, and she is already back on what was her home turf, just in a different shirt. 

Leicester kicked off the first half but struggled to hold on to that possession throughout the opening minutes of the match. 

An early throw in from the Foxes’ Skipper Tierney saw an opportunity for the visitors but it was seemingly wasted as Spurs dominated their box. It wasn’t long before another lapse in judgement, when Leicester again lost possession in a dangerous area of the pitch, mere yards from goal, but the hosts couldn’t turn it into a shot. After facing significant pressure in their own half, the Foxes reversed and made a run for goal. A ball from new signing Mayling was well delivered to Van Egmond, but Kop deflected it. 

“There’s only one Ashleigh Neville” was heard from the stands, as she took a shot against her former club that ended up off target. It was a seemingly warm reception for the ex-Spurs fan favourite. 

Cain then took a shot against Kop. Whilst it appeared already off target, Kop pushed it further out past the post just to be sure. “Lize Kop Kop Kop”, the home fans sang in response. 

As the first half wound down, there was more excitement for the home fans. A ball driven by skipper England left Holdt 1v1 with Clark, but the ball hit the woodwork. 

The excitement continued with a corner from Summanen that ended in commotion in the box. An own goal from the Foxes was the verdict, off the head of none other than Neville. Not the impression she wanted to make against her former club surely. Spurs went into the break 1-0 up after one minute of added time. 

Tottenham opened the second half with dominance and confidence. England drove the ball to the visitors’ end, passed to Vinberg to take the shot that was then blocked by the Foxes. England and Vinberg continued to link up to press forward and had the possibility to look threatening, especially when they included Spurs newcomer Gaupset to heighten the press. Foxes forward Swaby denied them of any further chances.

There was a short stoppage in play as O’Brien received attention from medics, but she returned to the pitch a few minutes later.

As the second half ploughed on, it was time for another Spurs debut. Hamano entered the pitch in the 64thminute in place of fellow January signing Gaupset. Hamano has seen much success in her time at Chelsea; she looked a good fit with Martin Ho’s strengthening side. Leicester then also switched things around by bringing on Mouchon to replace Cain.

Leicester tried to be threatening in the box, the rebound driven by Neville who must have been on a quest for redemption, but it amounted to nothing, and the hosts regained possession pretty swiftly. 

They made another change then, bringing on Thomas to replace Vinberg. More substitutions then for Leicester as new signing Jansson came on to replace McLoughlin and Goodwin took the place of van Egmond.

In the 82nd minute, Tierney was shown the yellow card after committing a foul. The subsequent free kick was taken by Summamen and the chances that followed seemed promising. England delivered the ball to Hunt who was not only offside but hit the post anyway. There were many loud sighs from the home fans. You could definitely see an improvement in Spurs, under the leadership of Ho. They were able to create more chances in front of goal but still struggled to make anything meaningful out of them. There was another chance again in the 90th minute, it looked super exciting for the home fans. Thomas drove the ball, passed to an open England who, under pressure, passed to Koga and then the chance was gone. 

7 minutes were added. As the additional time began, Ayane came on for the Foxes to replace O’Brien. 7 minutes could be ample time to find an equaliser for some sides, but this Leicester squad were just putting out fires where they could. Neville was then shown the yellow card for a bad foul. 

Tottenham took the 3 points, interestingly, with thanks to that own goal from Neville. An own goal against your former club that bumps them up to 4th in the table. Who would have thought?

Photo from GETTY IMAGES
Categories
WSL

SIGNE GAUPSET- TOTTENHAM’S LATEST TALENT

Signe Gaupset is a name not so well known to Women’s Super League fans but will be very soon…

The twenty-year-old has already racked up fourteen appearances for her national side, Norway, and has scored seven goals from a central midfield position. Her first international call-up under current boss Gemma Grainger came in February 2024. She made her international debut against Croatia on the 27th of February. She came on in the 73rd minute, replacing former Tottenham midfielder Celin Bizet Ildhusøy.

However, it was her impressive performances at SK Brann that attracted the attention of WSL clubs, with Spurs ultimately winning the race for her signature. Gaupset joined SK Brann in 2021, having established her trade at youth level with Rival and Molde. She already wrote her name into the history books by scoring at the age of just sixteen on her Brann debut, solidifying her passage as a fan favourite early on.

Part of her SK Brann journey was overseen by current Tottenham boss Martin Ho. Her most well-known moment under his management? Picture the scene: European giants OL Lyonnes at home, 2-1 down and needing a draw to advance to the knockout stages… Who else but Gaupset to step up and score an equaliser in the fourth minute of injury time, securing Brann a point in the group stages and sending them through to the knockout rounds of the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time in their history.

But it was her 2025 Toppserien season that really showed how much of a young developing talent she is. During this season Gaupset played in a centre midfield position and made twenty-six appearances, playing a total of 2,093 minutes. Of these twenty-six games, she started an astonishing twenty-five.

An even more impressive record from midfield was the number of goals and assists she managed to achieve. During the course of the season, Gaupset scored an impressive fifteen goals and secured fourteen assists, just showing how much of an incredible player she is. These incredible stats from her season saw her pick up the leagues player of the season award.

Now coming into the WSL, Spurs fans will be hoping she can kick on with her incredible form!

Categories
WSL

The WSL transfer window so far

PHOTO: @SPURSWOMEN ON X

The Barclays Women’s Super League cohort of teams have spent no time at all reinforcing their sides, with ten players already signed in the first three days since the window opened on January second. 

Here is your rundown of all the new faces in the league so far.

Starting with Arsenal, they have chosen to start their January rebuild by signing nineteen-year-old Swedish right back Smilla Holmberg. The teenager joins them on a long-term contract from current Damallsvenskan champions BK Häcken. During the 2025 season, Holmberg racked up an impressive six goals and four assists whilst featuring in all twenty-six league games.

Moving onto Liverpool, who currently sit in the relegation zone, they have started by bringing in Swedish right back Alice Bergström, a league winner from BK Häcken who, at just twenty-two years old, has already racked up an impressive one hundred and forty nine senior club appearances for four different clubs across Sweden. Last season she featured in twenty-five games for the Champions, managing an impressive eleven G/A in all competitions from right back, a strong addition to a struggling Liverpool side. 

On the red side of Manchester, they have moved quickly, with both their newest additions being confirmed in late December. In their attacking department, they have a significant boost in signing Lea Schüller. The 28-year-old joins from current Frauen-Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich Having featured in sixteen games in all competitions, she’s netted a tidy eight goals and four assists already this season, and the Red Devils will be hoping this form continues as they continue to battle for a top three spot in the league come the end of the season.

Further to this, they have bolstered their defence by acquiring the services of twenty-three year old Swedish international Hanna Lundkvist following her departure from San Diego Wave earlier in December. 

In the Leicester camp, they have strengthened in the defensive department by confirming the signing of twenty-nine-year-old Emma Jansson from FC Rosengård in the Damallsvenskan. During the 2025 season, she made twenty-four appearances, scoring four goals and notching two assists in a season which saw Rosengård stay up on the final day of the season.

And finally, the last team heavily involved in the transfer market so far is Tottenham Hotspur, who have completed the signings of five new players. The first signing they confirmed was young Norwegian talent Signe Gaupset, who excelled this season for SK Brann, as in twenty-six games she scored an astonishing fifteen goals and accumulated fourteen assists, making her one of the most sought-after talents going into January, and Spurs were the winners of her signature.

Adding to their already impressive defence this season, they have secured both Hannah Wijk and Julie Blakstad from BK Häcken and Hammarby, respectively. Wijk secured one assist last season and was part of the title-winning BK Häcken side, and Blakstad, who featured for a significant chunk of the season at left back last season, recorded an immense fifteen goals and six assists in twenty-six games, earning her Hammarby’s player of the season award. 

Back in the attacking department, Spurs have acquired yet another Swedish champion in attacking midfielder Matilda Nildén, who in twenty-five league games secured one goal and five assists; however, in this transfer to Tottenham, she joins her older sister Amanda, who joined the club in June of 2024.

Finally, in a cross-London move, WSL champion Maika Hamano joins Spurs on a loan deal lasting until the end of the season, having only featured for the Blues four times so far.

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Subway Women’s League Cup

Man United head into the semi-finals of the Subway Women’s League Cup after defeating Spurs

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By Charlie Burrell

Manchester United 

STARTING XI: Tullis-Joyce (GK), Sandberg, Le Tissier , Blundell, Toone, Park, Terland, Rolfo, Janssen, Zigiotti Olme, Miyazawa


Subs: Malard (58’), Naaslund (62‘), Awujo (91‘), 

Tottenham Hotspur

STARTING XI: Kop (GK), Nilde, England, Holdt, Vinberg, Hunt, Thomas, Spence, Summanen, Neville, Koga

Subs: Gunning-Williams (64‘), Dennis (83‘)

A week on from the WSL clash that saw United make up a 3 goal deficit between the 74th and 94th minutes, each side returned to The Progress and Unity Stadium for a rematch that’ll decide who will progress into the Subway League Cup semi-finals.

Despite Tottenham’s clinical goal scoring in the WSL matchup, they lost the 3 goal lead against the home side leaving a lot of anticipation for this weekend’s rematch where a draw wouldn’t suffice as each side aim to book a place in the Subway League Cup semi-finals.

Martin Ho made no changes for this repeat fixture against Manchester United but Skinner’s reds having played a mid-week Champion’s League fixtures see Malard to the bench in place of Zigiotti Olme, and Rolfo make a second consecutive start since her key role in United’s comeback a week ago. Blundell was switched out for Gabbie George, covering for Jayde Riviere who was unavailable for the second game in a row after the clash against Tottenham last week left Riviere with a knock. 

Blundell was also presented her England legacy cap by teammate Ella Toone, an acknowledgement of the defender having made 3 appearances for the Lionesses in 2018.

Immediately after kick-off Tottenham showed the same kind of fight as last week, having a couple of free kicks won in the first 5 minutes, and the first shot of the game, albeit an off-target chance missed by England as her header went wide to the left. 

Despite Zigiotti Olme presented with an opportunity to thread a ball centrally for Terland, the Norwegian forward was unable to turn and keep on her feet. 

In the 13th minute Holdt was set up for a clear shot against United keeper Tullis-Joyce who made the necessary save, sending it out for a corner.

Only 3 minutes later in the 16th minute, Drew Spence sent Tottenham ahead with a volley which seemed inevitable after their dominance in attacking in the opening 15 minutes. The chance came after a clearance by Le Tissier who headed the ball directly at Spence, who had plenty of time to let the ball drop and bounce back up for the volley into the top left, unreachable by Tullis-Joyce. 

Having gone behind, United responded with multiple shots of their own, but struggled to put one on target. Toone’s shot from outside the box with her left foot went wide in the 20th.

In the 24th minute, a foul on Zigiotti Olme, led to a booking for Drew Spence and a direct freekick attempt that was curled over the crossbar by Sandberg.

In this time of constant attack from the red side, Kop remained steady and brave in goal, coming out to claim and punch balls sent in from crosses and and corners sent in by United. 

In the last 10 minutes of the first half, Tottenham picked back up on holding possession long enough to make it into United’s defensive half where in the 40th minute, Thomas made a wide shot left of the post, and a corner was blocked by Tullis-Joyce, and cleared by Park. 


The first half ended 1-0 to the visitors, but Manchester United came out seemingly calmer on the ball and Tottenham letting more mistakes creep in for the home side to reset. 

An equaliser was reached by the 51st minute as Neville failed to stop Rolfo’s low pass cut back into the box allowed Park, unmarked, to strike it into the bottom right corner.

Whilst possession continued to be exchanged in the midfield, United remained the more likely side to score a winner after another chance, this time a shot to the bottom left by Janssen, was saved by Kop. 

Just a minute later, Malard replaced Terland in leading the front line, and Toone was taken off for Naaslund in minute 62 after she took herself to the floor for medical attention after an injury off the ball.

Spurs also took out Thomas with Gunnin-Willaims a minute later replacing her on the left wing.

An important save from Kop came in the 69th minute as a Malard set up Rolfo for a shot in the bottom left corner.

After the substitutes from United, Tottenham looked better and started to make their own way forward into United’s defensive half with England forcing a save from Tullis-Joyce but the decision favoured a goal kick for the home side. 

More subs made by the visitors in the 83nd minute brought in Dennis for Holdt, but United picked up steam once again, peppering Tottenham’s defense in an attempt to get a winner over the line.

A winner for Manchester United came in the 86th from Fridolina Rolfo as she made the same run as Park did for her goal, drifting centrally into the box to shoot a low pass from Malard into the top left corner. 

United made a final substitution in the 91st minute, bringing in Awujo as Blundell who has had a good time linking up with Park on the right side despite strong pressure from Tottenham throughout the match. 

Despite a turn in possession and attack favouring Tottenham in search of an equaliser, a 94th minute cross from Hunt from the right went all the left side but no one was there and Summanen almost threaded a pass for Gunning-Williams but was blocked by United’s defense.

A final run from Gunning-Willaims was thwarted by the defensive work of Zigiotti Olme guiding the ball out of play. After 96th without the equaliser needed, Tottenham were knocked out of the competition and allowed Skinner’s red devils to succeed into the semi-finals. 

With yet another important goal and assist, Fridolina Rolfo has proven to be a key player in the squad since her summer signing and Manchester United finish 2025 with a second key win despite performances dipping as the season has gone on.

Despite the lost points last week and the knockout today, Martin Ho has turned Tottenham Hotspurs around from their form last season and is ending 2025 5th in the league and 2 points from a champion’s league spot which North London rivals Arsenal currently hold. 

Manchester United will travel away to face Arsenal in the semi-finals of the Subway Women’s League Cup on January 21st 2026.