An afternoon fixture in North London set the stage for a highly anticipated meeting between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, Brisbane Road playing host to a clash of repeat or revenge. The home side would be looking to change the narrative on the fixture’s history, after falling to a 7-0 demolition in their last encounter with Manchester City. As for the visitors, Gareth Taylor’s Cityzens would be looking to continue their red-hot form and draw themselves closer to Chelsea at the league table’s summit.
After receiving the devastating news that Jill Roord had ruptured her Anterior cruciate ligament in City’s midweek derby with Manchester United, Gareth Taylor was forced into making a change in the field’s central areas. Laura Coombs would make her return into the starting eleven, being the sole change for Manchester City’s afternoon line up.
As for Tottenham, Robert Vilahamn’s chosen side would see both Charli Grant and Amanda Vílden make their inaugural appearance in the Spurs starting eleven.
TOT: Votíková, Grant, Turner, Bartrip, Nílden, Summamen, Clinton, Ahtinen, Bizet, England, Thomas
MCI: Keating, Aleixandri, Greenwood, Ouahabi, Casparij, Coombs, Hasegawa, Angeldahl, Hemp, Kelly, Shaw
All kicked off at Brisbane Road, both sides commencing the clash with insatiable hunger as the opening whistle blew.
It would be the visitors who had the first opportunity to open the scoring in North London, as Alex Greenwood stepped up to the spot to take a free kick in an opportunistic position just outside of the area. Despite a curling effort, Barbora Votíková’s stretching effort was enough to see the City captain’s strike denied of a score.
Though the Cityzens would continue to press the disorganised Spurs, before a poorly mistimed clearance attempt by Amy Turner saw the ball land in the back of her own net to break the deadlock.
The visitors continued to pounce, before a controversial blunder at the back saw Votíková collect a back pass inside of her box. Despite the desperate appeals from the Manchester City front line, no foul was awarded by Melissa Burgin.
Embed from Getty ImagesManchester City showcased in impressive regard, as a long ranged effort from Khiara Keating found Chloe Kelly roaming in the wide area. Beating her defender with clinical authority, Kelly sent a searching ball inside of the area. Despite finding herself in an unmarked position on the penalty spot, Coombs was unable to strike with brilliance as her attempt was cleared with ease.
The home side found their spark through the field’s central areas, as Eveliina Summanen sent a splitting ball through to an advancing Thomas. The Scottish striker made no mistake in finding Tottenham their equaliser, before her celebrations were cut short by the rise of the offside flag.
Lauren Hemp found herself with an opportunity to double Manchester City’s advantage in the half’s final moments, expertly weaving through the Spurs last line to close in on Votíková. Despite her best efforts, Hemp’s shot-off was blocked in desperation, before being cleared away of the danger zone.
Embed from Getty ImagesManchester City continued their trot after the break, as Hemp stormed the area with conviction. Diverting the defenders and directing the ball into the left area, Shaw collected the possession inside the box, before doing what she does best. In what is her 50th appearance for the Mancunian side, Shaw saw her strike fly past Votíková to give the visitors their second of the afternoon.
The fixture continued on similar terms, as Manchester City found themselves dictating play with a conservative approach as the clock ran down.
Tottenham continued to charge despite their deficit, as Jessica Naz found herself in an opportunistic position after coming off the bench. Naz attempted her strike with lack of a controlling touch, seeing her shot fly over the woodwork.
The final whistle blew here at Brisbane Road, as Manchester City secured a 2-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on the road. Another victory for the Cityzens cements them firmly inside of the title race, as Tottenham now trail the battle for fourth by three points.
