Tottenham Mount Stunning Champions League Push After Remarkable WSL Revival
Tottenham’s women have defied every expectation this season, turning a campaign that began with survival concerns into a genuine fight for Women’s Champions League qualification as they close in on the league’s established powers.
With eight matches remaining in the Women’s Super League, Spurs sit just one point behind six-time reigning champions Chelsea, who currently occupy the third and final European place. It is a position that seemed unthinkable only months ago for a side that finished second from bottom last season.
The margins have been painfully fine. Late goals conceded against bottom club Liverpool and a dramatic collapse from a 3-0 lead at Manchester United before Christmas have cost Spurs valuable points. Had either result gone differently, Tottenham would be firmly entrenched among the league’s top two.
The context makes their rise even more striking. Since promotion seven years ago, Spurs have managed only two wins from 49 league matches against Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United. Financially, they remain miles behind a top four that has spent seven figures on individual players in the past year. Yet Tottenham are now competing with all of them on equal footing.
Sunday’s meeting with Chelsea offers a defining moment. Spurs welcome a wounded Blues side that has lost back-to-back league games for the first time in over a decade, knowing victory would lift them above the champions and into a Champions League spot.
The foundations for this surge were laid early. Tottenham opened the season with a narrow 1-0 win over West Ham, a result that quietly reset a squad coming off a 10-game winless run that stretched back to January. Confidence, fragile at best, began to return.
Head coach Martin Ho inherited a group that already possessed pedigree. Thirteen players had reached the FA Cup final and finished sixth in the WSL in 2023-24, narrowly missing the club’s best-ever top-flight campaign. Rather than overhaul the squad, Ho focused on clarity, structure and belief.
Tottenham’s transfer approach reflected that confidence. Only two players arrived in the summer, but both have been transformative. Teenage defender Toko Koga has emerged as one of the division’s most reliable centre-backs, while Cathinka Tandberg has delivered four goals and two assists from just seven starts after joining days before the season began.
January brought further reinforcement. Five additions added depth and energy, with Norway international Signe Gaupset the standout arrival. Her decision to move to north London was as much about Tottenham’s direction as familiarity with Ho, underlining the growing credibility of the project.
On the pitch, the change has been obvious. Spurs now play with intensity, fitness and freedom, pressing higher and moving the ball with greater purpose. The attacking players are supported earlier, the defensive line holds firm, and belief has replaced hesitation.
That identity has carried them through difficult moments and close games, keeping them in the race as others have faltered. Tottenham are no longer hoping to keep up. They are actively shaping the battle.
As the season enters its decisive phase, Spurs stand on the brink of history. Champions League qualification remains a daunting challenge, but momentum, belief and opportunity are firmly on their side.