After making a return to the FAWSL, Tottenham Hotspur Women were hoping to make their mark on the league and become a mainstay for years to come. Just like Manchester United Women, Spurs are the new team on the block with the three established top teams far and above the rest. The key to any team’s first season is survival and stay in the top flight and to achieve this defensive solidarity becomes critical. Spurs have been anything but solid with a horrendous record conceding 18 goals in 11 games.
This tactical analysis scout report will be analysing their defensive frailties and understand where it’s going wrong for them. We will also analyse the tactics used to better understand if their style of play affects their defensive issues.
Style of play
Tottenham Hotspur Women usually line up in a structured 4-2-3-1 (26%) or 4-4-2 (24%). As we can see, Spurs have tried a number of formations but have relied upon the 4-2-3-1 and 4-4-2 for the majority of the campaign. The aim of the two formations is to create a solid foundation through the middle with an aim to keep a compact solid shape out of possession to then transition into counter-attacks. Certain pressing mechanisms will trigger them to counter-attack often when the opposition has committed numbers forward.
While on paper this setup seems to make sense for a team that is trying to establish themselves in the league, why do they leak so many goals? Using analysis, we will breakdown three specific aspects that are affecting their defensive system.
Tottenham Hotspur Women’s Shape & Pressing mechanics
To understand how the team presses we will need to examine and understand their shape. As is customary with any counter-attacking side, pressing is an integral part of a system. Usually, it starts from the front with the attacking players putting pressure on the opposition defenders limiting the space and time they have on the ball. For Tottenham Hotspur Women this stems from their rigid 4-4-2/4-2-3-1 setup. Juan Amoros and Karen Hills have tried to instil compactness and solidarity from the beginning and while the overall shape is good. They seem to be playing a low-block system allowing the opposition to come on to them before trying to dispossess them deep to counter-attack. However, the pressing becomes an issue once they go further back.
