Photograph: Adam Davy/PA
All eyes turn to north London once more this weekend as the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium hosts the WSL’s eighth edition of the famous derby. Over 20,000 are expected to watch an encounter featuring two sides at very different stages in their development as a growing Tottenham host league heavyweights Arsenal.
There are more than bragging rights at stake. Arsenal are focused on mounting challenging Chelsea’s dominance and a win would ensure they stay neck and neck with the champions. Meanwhile Robert Vilahamn’s Tottenham are looking to show they have closed the gap on their rivals and cement their position in mid-table, providing them with a solid platform to build on in 2024.
It is a fixture Arsenal have dominated with six wins and one draw in the previous meetings. They will be expected to remain unbeaten, not only because of their recent impressive form but their strength in depth, too. The confidence among Jonas Eidevall’s side is running high after seven league wins in succession, the pieces clicking into place after a relatively abject start.
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They will be particularly buoyed by their demolition of Chelsea in front of a record-breaking crowd at the Emirates last Sunday. Arsenal outperformed their rivals with their intensity and speed on the transition. Victoria Pelova and Alessia Russo were standout performers in those departments. The former has been crucial this campaign with displays that illustrate exactly why Eidevall signed her from Ajax. Her aptitude for resisting pressure, retaining the ball and breaking through an opponent’s lines is a key element as is the intelligence and off-the-ball work of Russo. The England forward’s ability to trigger her side’s press and hassle defenders is an essential strength alongside her obvious technical ability.
These are only some of the elements Tottenham will have to be wary of. They come into this fixture following two league defeats despite a strong start to the season. Since his arrival in the summer, Vilahamn has instilled a strong identity in his side – the “Tottenham way” – that he rarely strays from. It is a style based on a desire to attack and possess the ball. While this can lead to their downfall at times – from porous defending for example in 7-0 and 4-0 defeats to Manchester City and Manchester United respectively – he is convinced that, while there might be short-term pain, it will eventually lead to long-term gain.
They will be buoyed by their performance against Arsenal in the League Cup that had to be settled on penalites on Wednesday. In a scheduling quirk that means they meet again three days after the 3-3 thriller Arsenal eventually won, it was a display of courage that will have given Spurs plenty to build on coming into this weekend. “[Against Arsenal] I think you saw brave people who want to play football in the Tottenham way,” Vilahamn said. “I think we can match this team if we do that. But if we don’t do it, we are not there yet. We need to have a maximum level and we need to play our style otherwise we’re going to lose.”
They are not helped by a spate of injury problems that has seen his first-choice midfield in ruins. Injuries to Drew Spence, Olga Ahtinen and Eveliina Summanen have left Vilahamn without his three stalwarts in the middle, forcing him to shuffle his personnel around. The return to fitness of captain Bethany England, however, is a boost after her 55-minute cameo against United last weekend while the impressive Grace Clinton is also available.
It is the first time Tottenham will play in their main stadium this season, a showpiece occasion with the club possessing ambitions to progress on and off the field. In Arsenal they face a stern test of their abilities, but it will not define their season.
The pressure will be firmly on their opponents who cannot afford to falter if they are to really make a charge for the title in the second half of the campaign.
