Tottenham Hotspur host Chelsea in the Barclays Women’s Super League this weekend.
And although defending champions Chelsea come into the game off the back of two successive defeats – 2-0 to Arsenal, and a humiliating 5-1 to league leaders Manchester City – Spurs head coach Martin Ho says they are still a very dangerous side to face.
“They’re a wonderful team, and if anyone thinks that them losing two games turns them into a bad team, then you’re very, very, very mistaken,” he said in a press conference on Friday.
“They’re a wonderful team, they have wonderful players, they have a wonderful manager.
“They played Arsenal and Manchester City, two top teams, and in those games it’s kind of nip and tuck who takes the chances at that level and unfortunately Chelsea have been on the back end of that and you expect the response, you know they’re going to be dangerous and we know what the threats are going to be like: very dynamic players in the front line, very good players in central areas. They’ve got some of the most decorated central midfielders in world football.
“So we need to be aware and we will be, but…we have to show no fear in that. We have to apply ourselves correctly and focus on ourselves and what we want to do.”
Martin Ho: Tottenham must prepare for Chelsea at their best
And that means very detailed preparation.
“It doesn’t make Chelsea…a poor team because they lose two games,” he went on. “Every team loses a game and every player can have an off day, and we need to make sure we prepare for Chelsea at their best.”
He added: “When teams maybe go down, they want to respond, and they have a lot of experienced and elite players in that team and they have a lot of dangerous players in the front or midfield line and we have to be aware of that.