Olga Ahtinen makes immediate impact on return from injury for Tottenham Women in win over Sheffield United Women
Tottenham Women returned to action with a 3-2 victory over Sheffield United Women at Brisbane Road, in a match full of drama and talking points.
Spurs’ last outing saw them record their first-ever victory over Arsenal Women, beating the Gunners 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday 16 December.
Almost a month later, they were back in action, as they advanced to the fifth round of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup at the expense of the Blades on Sunday 14 January.
It was a win which saw the club build on their positive momentum and a match which featured a host of returns and debuts for the North London side.
New signings Charlotte Grant and Matilda Vinberg made their first appearances in Spurs colours, with Grant playing a full 90 minutes while Vinberg was introduced in the 65th minute of the match.
It certainly wasn’t a stress-free debut for either player, as the home side found themselves 2-0 down after 51 minutes and in need of a dramatic comeback, which fortunately they were able to mount thanks to club captain, Beth England.
Big moments call for big players, and England proved she certainly falls into that category, with the striker grabbing two second-half goals, her first two of the season, to get Spurs back on level terms.
In addition to her strikes in the 69th and 80th minute, England looked back to her best with her overall performance, completing 91 per cent of her passes, with two of those being key, and winning seven of her nine aerial duels (Sofascore).
Eveliina Summanen has been out of action since 26 November and was one of two key players to make her return from injury, featuring as a centre-back alongside Molly Bartrip before being replaced on 45 minutes, but it was her international teammate Olga Ahtinen who made the biggest impact on her return to the first-team fold.
The Finnish midfielder has been sidelined since 12 November after picking up a knee injury against Liverpool Women, and after a positive start to her life in England, she picked up right where she left off with a stunning last-minute assist for Rosella Ayane, who netted Spurs’ dramatic 97th-minute winner to complete the comeback.
Ahtinen was brought on in the 65th minute and showed her quality, playing two key passes, four accurate long balls forward and creating that one big chance which proved key in the closing stages of the match.
Vilahamn will be glad to have the midfielder back, and piled the praise on her after the match (Tottenham Hotspur Official Website, 16 January), “I must say, Olga in the last 25 minutes was all over the place, with high quality and plenty of energy – she was a game changer for us. I’m delighted to have them back with us and it’s also nice to see new players coming as well.”
Spurs will now face Charlton Athletic Women at home in the next round of the competition as they look to reach the quarter-final stage.
In other Tottenham news, one young Spurs midfielder proved he could become the dream player for Ange Postecoglou in his recent performance.