On Sunday, Tottenham Hotspur have a chance to triumph in their first Women’s FA Cup final and end a 33-year curse in the club’s semi-finals in the competition.
Spurs have a proud history in the men’s FA Cup, winning the world’s oldest knockout tournament for the first time in 1901. When they won the festival in 1991, it was a record eighth triumph, more than any other club at the time.
However, since then, the men’s team has reached 8 more FA Cup semi-finals and lost them all. Their position in the FA Cup record books has been snatched away by bitter north London rivals Arsenal, who have won nine FA Cups in the last 33. years, beating Spurs in two semi-finals. Tottenham Hotspur have won a trophy since 2008.
With the men’s team out of contention for all domestic trophies this season, it may be the women’s team that ends the club’s 16-year wait for a major trophy. While last year’s FA Cup finalists, Manchester United and Chelsea, will meet in Saturday’s tournament. In their first semi-final, Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City will meet on Sunday for a chance to reach their first Women’s FA Cup final.
The winners of this match will be the 32nd team to reach the final of the competition, which was first played in 1971. Since 2014, all domestic women’s trophies have been won through one of three teams: Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester City. No The club, apart from those 3, has triumphed in the Women’s FA Cup since Birmingham City in 2012.
Unlike the men’s FA Cup semi-finals, which are played on impartial ground, Spurs will have merit at home in Sunday’s match against Leicester City. In fact, they were tied at home in all four rounds of the competition.
At the heart of their improvement this season have been the performances of 21-year-old Grace Clinton, who scored five goals for the club on loan from Manchester United and made it to England’s senior squad, starting with the Lionesses last Friday at Wembley. However, if Spurs face Manchester United in the FA Cup final, Clinton will be eligible to play against his parent club.
To succeed at this stage, Tottenham Hotspur have already made history. Having never made it past the quarter-finals, they won last month against league leaders Manchester City. After falling in the match, Spurs qualified after a dramatic penalty shootout against the country’s in-form team who are currently on a record run of 12 consecutive wins in the Women’s Super League. Goalkeeper Becky Spencer, a member of Birmingham City’s 2012 FA Cup-winning team, memorably stored the aftermath of England internationals Alex Greenwood and Chloe. Kelly.
A week later, Spurs beat their next FA Cup opponent Leicester City in the league, giving them confidence heading into Sunday’s game. That match will be played at the club’s main stadium, Tottenham Hotspur, where the Spurs women’s team are unbeaten in their last 4 matches, the last of which a historic first win over Arsenal.
LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 16: Tottenham Hotspur’s Martha Thomas celebrates with her teammates after. . . [ ] Score her team’s first goal in the Barclays Women’s Super League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on December 16, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
Tottenham Hotspur need to play under new coach Robert Vilahamn. It’s a taste that reflects the progress with which the men’s team has also been praised this season.
Speaking to the club’s website, Vilahamn revealed: “I was hired because the way I play is related to the way the club needs to play. But that’s how we’re here to “dare to do it” and it’s as undeniable as you are. “I don’t want to be afraid of anything because the club needs you to be brave and you make it and you don’t, but we keep going and that’s what I love about this club.
“Ange (Postecoglou) is doing amazing things here with the men’s team and we’re looking to build with the women’s team, we’re making smart progress. It will take time, but we are in a very smart position and in a few years we can win titles together. “