As Manchester United and Tottenham prepare to clash in the Women’s FA Cup final, the competition is guaranteed to have a brand new winner.
It is the first time since 2005 that no Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester City have managed to qualify for the Wembley showpiece.
After Spurs came from behind to beat Leicester 2-1 in the semi-final and Man United shocked Chelsea to win by the same scoreline, the finalists must prepare for their decisive encounter.
With Man United currently fourth in the WSL table and Spurs sixth, there isn’t much separating these two teams on paper.
But before their all-important Cup showdown at Wembley Stadium on May 12, both men will have taken part in something of a dress rehearsal.
They meet in the WSL on Sunday April 21 at Leigh Sports Valley in a match that could tell us a lot about what we can expect from next month’s final.
While there may not be any silverware on the line, there is still the question of the top four to be decided in the WSL table. Although only the top three places will get you into the Women’s Champions League, the top four remains an important goal for WSL clubs.
Spurs are six points behind fourth-placed Man United, but they also have a game in hand.
Given that United still have a few tough matches to play against Liverpool and Chelsea this season, Spurs know they could have an outside chance of finishing in the revered top four.
Speaking to Tottenham Hotspur’s official website, Spurs manager Robert Vilahamn explained how their ambitions remain high, despite their current sixth place.
He said: “It’s a game where we can try to fight for the top four, so we’re just focusing on this game and how to beat Man United.”
The Swedish coach insisted that for now his focus is not on the FA Cup final, but on the individual match ahead of them.
He said: “When we played this game we can of course use it for the final, but for us it’s this game and the final is too far away at the moment to focus on that.
“The mindset we have is towards the next game, so the main thing is to have a good starting XI, a good bench, a good game plan and try to beat Man United because we want to compete for the top four Obviously this is difficult because there are not many games left, but we have a chance and we should try it in this match.
The bad news for Spurs: they will be without one of their key stars for their two meetings with Man United.
Young Lioness Grace Clinton is currently on loan to Tottenham from United and therefore remains ineligible to participate in matches.
Indeed, Clinton will have an important decision to make at the end of the season as to which club his future lies with.
But the midfield will be a huge loss as Spurs are forced to deal with a Man United midfield that contains Lionesses like Ella Toone and Katie Zelem.
The last time these two teams met in the WSL was a day to forget for Spurs.
The Red Devils beat the north Londoners by four, despite welcoming back captain Bethany England for the first time since her hip operation.
Goals from Toone, Hayley Ladd, Hannah Blundell and Melvine Malard proved how complete their attack could be on a good day.
But as Man United manager Marc Skinner admitted, Tottenham already look a much stronger team than when they last met in December.
He told Manchester United’s official website: “Respect to Tottenham, I always respect every opponent we face. We prepare to get around their strengths, their weaknesses.”
The highlight of Tottenham’s WSL season so far was their historic 1-0 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, with Spurs having never beaten the Gunners in women’s football.
The woman of the hour that day – as she was again on the day of the FA Cup final victory over Leicester – was none other than former Man United striker Martha Thomas.
Thomas moved from the Red Devils to Spurs at the start of the 2023 season after struggling for minutes at her former club.
But the Scotland international has settled in like a duck to water at Tottenham, scoring ten goals in all competitions so far this season.
She will once again be vital as she prepares to face her former team in these two crucial matches and Man United would do well to prepare particularly well for the aerial threat she poses in the box.
Spurs will not be intimidated by the fact that Man United go into these games as slight favorites, especially after recently knocking out playing giants ManCity in the FA Cup in a match that sums up their progress this season.
As manager Skinner knows, the momentum their FA Cup semi-final victory has given them makes them dangerous indeed.
He said: “I think the difference with Tottenham this year is that Robert [Vilahamn’]I was able to relive those moments where you win a match and all of a sudden you get that confidence and you get into a state of flow.
“And I think they’ve really benefited from that this year. I think what you have to do as a coach against that is try to disrupt that flow. If you disrupt the flow and get them thinking about the way they play football, then we can disrupt the cohesion of their team, it changes and it adapts.”
You can watch talkSPORT’s women’s football show on Mondays from 7pm on talkSPORT 2.
As Manchester United and Tottenham prepare to clash in the Women’s FA Cup final, the competition is guaranteed to have a brand new winner.
It is the first time since 2005 that no Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester City have managed to qualify for the Wembley showpiece.
After Spurs came from behind to beat Leicester 2-1 in the semi-final and Man United shocked Chelsea to win by the same scoreline, the finalists must prepare for their decisive encounter.
With Man United currently fourth in the WSL table and Spurs sixth, there isn’t much separating these two teams on paper.
But before their all-important Cup showdown at Wembley Stadium on May 12, both men will have taken part in something of a dress rehearsal.
They meet in the WSL on Sunday April 21 at Leigh Sports Valley in a match that could tell us a lot about what we can expect from next month’s final.
While there may not be any silverware on the line, there is still the question of the top four to be decided in the WSL table. Although only the top three places will get you into the Women’s Champions League, the top four remains an important goal for WSL clubs.
Spurs are six points behind fourth-placed Man United, but they also have a game in hand.
Given that United still have a few tough matches to play against Liverpool and Chelsea this season, Spurs know they could have an outside chance of finishing in the revered top four.
Speaking to Tottenham Hotspur’s official website, Spurs manager Robert Vilahamn explained how their ambitions remain high, despite their current sixth place.
He said: “It’s a game where we can try to fight for the top four, so we’re just focusing on this game and how to beat Man United.”
The Swedish coach insisted that for now his focus is not on the FA Cup final, but on the individual match ahead of them.
He said: “When we played this game we can of course use it for the final, but for us it’s this game and the final is too far away at the moment to focus on that.
“The mindset we have is towards the next game, so the main thing is to have a good starting XI, a good bench, a good game plan and try to beat Man United because we want to compete for the top four Obviously this is difficult because there are not many games left, but we have a chance and we should try it in this match.
The bad news for Spurs: they will be without one of their key stars for their two meetings with Man United.
Young Lioness Grace Clinton is currently on loan to Tottenham from United and therefore remains ineligible to participate in matches.
Indeed, Clinton will have an important decision to make at the end of the season as to which club his future lies with.
But the midfield will be a huge loss as Spurs are forced to deal with a Man United midfield that contains Lionesses like Ella Toone and Katie Zelem.
The last time these two teams met in the WSL was a day to forget for Spurs.
The Red Devils beat the north Londoners by four, despite welcoming back captain Bethany England for the first time since her hip operation.
Goals from Toone, Hayley Ladd, Hannah Blundell and Melvine Malard proved how complete their attack could be on a good day.
But as Man United manager Marc Skinner admitted, Tottenham already look a much stronger team than when they last met in December.
He told Manchester United’s official website: “Respect to Tottenham, I always respect every opponent we face. We prepare to get around their strengths, their weaknesses.”
The highlight of Tottenham’s WSL season so far was their historic 1-0 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, with Spurs having never beaten the Gunners in women’s football.
The woman of the hour that day – as she was again on the day of the FA Cup final victory over Leicester – was none other than former Man United striker Martha Thomas.
Thomas moved from the Red Devils to Spurs at the start of the 2023 season after struggling for minutes at her former club.
But the Scotland international has settled in like a duck to water at Tottenham, scoring ten goals in all competitions so far this season.
She will once again be vital as she prepares to face her former team in these two crucial matches and Man United would do well to prepare particularly well for the aerial threat she poses in the box.
Spurs will not be intimidated by the fact that Man United go into these games as slight favorites, especially after recently knocking out playing giants ManCity in the FA Cup in a match that sums up their progress this season.
As manager Skinner knows, the momentum their FA Cup semi-final victory has given them makes them dangerous indeed.
He said: “I think the difference with Tottenham this year is that Robert [Vilahamn’]I was able to relive those moments where you win a match and all of a sudden you get that confidence and you get into a state of flow.
“And I think they’ve really benefited from that this year. I think what you have to do as a coach against that is try to disrupt that flow. If you disrupt the flow and get them thinking about the way they play football, then we can disrupt the cohesion of their team, it changes and it adapts.”
You can watch talkSPORT’s women’s football show on Mondays from 7pm on talkSPORT 2.