Chelsea at Tottenham: Women’s Super League match preview

There are just four matches left in the Women’s Super League season and Chelsea has just one thing on its mind: taking all 12 points. After a relatively comfortable win over rival Arsenal over the weekend in the FA Cup semifinal, the Blues have back-to-back matches against Rehanne Skinner and fifth-place Tottenham Hotspur. It will be the first time all season that Chelsea has taken on Spurs in any competition. Given the form that the Blues are in right now after shutting out the Gunners, Tottenham should realistically be two relatively comfortable wins. Given the international break and some of the COVID issues surrounding the club, Spurs have not played a single match since April 3rd when they lost 1-0 to Aston Villa. Skinner will have her players ready with one goal in mind though: play spoiler in the WSL title race.

Last week, Skinner signed a new contract running through the 2024 season to stay in north London and help continue to lead the rise of the Tottenham Women. She is a lot like Emma Hayes in some ways. Both were brought into their respective clubs to bring them to a completely new level that they had not previously reached. Since taking over in November of 2020, Skinner has lifted Spurs from a WSL 2 team in 2018/19 to a team that has cemented itself in the top five in the WSL after a historic 2021/22 campaign. Tottenham still isn’t at Chelsea’s level just yet, although Spurs could prove to be a stubborn competitor this week.

Chelsea Women take on Spurs in the WSL with title hopes still in their hands

The last two matches that these two teams were supposed to play each other were postponed due to COVID within both camps. Sunday’s clash at the Hive is a long time coming. Early May of last season—when Chelsea won 2-0—was the last time the London rivals faced off with one another. Spurs’ form right now is not the greatest, but a handful of London Derbies could change that luck. Tottenham has two matches against Chelsea and one against Arsenal coming up. Spurs have all the tools in front of them to flip the title race on its head. The pressure has not gotten to either the Blues or the Gunners, but if it does, Spurs will be there to take full advantage.

Before the match that was supposed to be played in late March, Hayes stated:

"“Everybody knows there is a long way to go. It will go all the way to the wire. I know we have to win every game, if we drop points it is clearly in Arsenal’s hands … This has been a year where more teams are vying for the top positions, that has been the difference this year. There is that recognition that is much harder to win games this year.”"

This weekend’s match is going to be the first time that the Blues will play a team in the top half of the table since the beginning of February when they took on Arsenal. Seeing Pernille Harder get back into the fold for Chelsea after missing three matches due to an injury is a great sight to see for fans. She only adds to an already potent attack that has Guro Reiten—in arguably the best form of her career—a reinvigorated Bethany England and the ever consistent Sam Kerr. Both the front and back lines are clicking at the moment. In the last five matches, Chelsea has netted 24 goals en route to a rebounding win streak following a disheartening loss in the Conti Cup final.

In a matter of weeks, the Blues could be lifting the WSL title for the third straight year, but they will have to earn it. The road to the title will be travelled on without Fran Kirby, who will surely be in the hearts of the team for the remainder of the season. There is no looking forward to the next match with what is at stake, this Sunday at the Hive is what Hayes and the Blues should focus on.

Hayes can attack each opponent in a multitude of different ways through the speed and skill of Kerr and Reiten, or the experience and savviness of England and Harder. However, with all of the rest that Skinner and her team are getting, they should be more than ready to take on the Blues. Spurs plays with the same back four every match. Canadian Shelina Zadorsky and the 25-year-old Molly Bartrip usually at the base of the defense. Skinner does fluctuate who plays where in the defense, but whoever is at the back of the 4-2-3-1 is going to have to play the game of their life.

Tottenham has some players that could create some sort of danger for Millie Bright and Co, like Rachel Williams. However, there is far too much talent at the other end of the pitch with Harder back for the Blues to stumble in even one of these games against Spurs.

How do you see the match playing out? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on Twitter!