Tottenham Hotspur 2-3 Aston Villa
By Jasmine Bishop (22/04/2025)
Above: Aston Villa celebrate their win. Photo: Aston Villa Women on X.
Kirsty Hanson scored a sensational last minute winner at Brisbane Road on Sunday to seal a 3-2 victory for Aston Villa, twenty minutes after coming off the bench.
The action
In the opening five minutes of the game, Aston Villa were arguably the stronger side. However, Tottenham Hotspur were not immediate underdogs in this fixture, and continued to have a few successful spells of play in the opening period.
On multiple occasions in the first half, Aston Villa seemed to press high, and capitalize on Tottenham Hotspur’s mistakes, picking up loose balls. However, they did give away a few free kicks, corners and opportunities that Spurs failed to capitalise on.
Both sides seemed to be confident on the wing, and created many threatening spells of play in the first half. One particularly threatening spell for Tottenham was when Lioness Jess Naz and Ashleigh Neville worked together to outpace the Villa defence. Neville sent a long ball in the direction of Martha Thomas, which was easily collected by Villa keeper Sabrina D’Angelo.
The first goal of the game came for Villa, in the 30th minute via a free kick for a late tackle on Ebony Salmon by Neville. Mayuemi (Maz) Pacheco and Lucy Staniforth stood over this free kick. However, it was Lucy Staniforth who crossed the ball into the box, which was headed by Daly against the post. Birthday girl Anna Patten, on the rebound, was able to slot the ball past Kop with her head.
Tottenham pressed high in the early stages of the second half, eager to get an equaliser. However Villa’s backline seemed to manage the high pressure from the Lilywhites and kept the ball out of the back of the net.
Villa got their second goal in the 56th minute. The successful spell of play started at the back with Lucy Parker who sent a long ball in the direction of Daly, who was quick to head the ball forwards in the direction of Salmon. Salmon raced for the ball, using her pace to outrun the Spurs defence.
Tottenham Hotspur was the first side to make changes, introducing Bethany England and Matilda Vinberg onto the field for Martha Thomas and Maite Oroz. The substitutes made an instant impact, helping to build Tottenham Hotspur’s momentum and assisting Naz in getting Tottenham Hotspur a goal back.
After getting a goal back, Spurs had the momentum, and only five minutes later they were able to get an equaliser. The successful spell of play started at the back with Dutch keeper Lize Kop, who sent the ball to Josefine Rybrink ahead.
In the seventy first minute, Natalie Arroyo substituted Kirsty Hanson into the field to replace Miri Taylor, and Hanson made an immediate impact.
Only 30 seconds into additional time, Aston Villa came goalwards with a promising counterattack. Chasity Grant played a loose ball into Hanson, who slotted the ball into the net to secure a fourth WSL victory (and important points on the board) for Villa.
Villa’s team spirit
All individuals who feature in this Aston Villa side played their part in this victory, however if it was not for the composure of Kirsty Hanson in the latter stages of the game, Aston Villa would not have sealed the win. With only three more games left this season, surely Aston Villa has drawn a close to their existing relegation battle with newly promoted Crystal Palace.
Credit must be given to Ebony Salmon, who despite being withdrawn in the 80th minute, was a huge asset to Aston Villa this weekend, not only scoring their second goal of the game to shift the momentum, but also picking up loose balls and creating several opportunities for the midlands side.
This was a crucial win for Aston Villa to reduce the risk of their side slipping into the relegation spot. With Aston Villa facing Arsenal, West Ham and Brighton & Hove Albion over the next three weeks, this victory was crucial to provide Arroyo’s side some relief as they head into the next three weeks with a positive mindset and strong confidence in themselves, their team and their abilities.
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