Martin Ho spoke to the media at Hotspur Way on Friday afternoon, ahead of our Barclays Women’s Super League clash against Aston Villa on Sunday (12noon UK).
Here are some key points on what he had to say…
Martin on whether Aston Villa are at the same stage as us right now…
“We’re in a good position, they’re in a good run of form. They've got a really good side, a good manager and they seem to have picked up some really good results. The performances are matching that, but any game we go into now we have to be at our best.”
Martin on the arrival of Signe Gaupset in January…
“Signe is a wonderful talent, a wonderful addition to this team. She’s someone I've obviously worked with previously at Brann and I feel she will bring a lot of excitement, and she'll bring a lot more depth to this team. She gives us a profile that we don't have within the squad and I want to make sure that every player we have here is different in profile, different in quality. She's someone we should definitely be excited about because she's one of the biggest talents within Europe.”
Martin on how he persuaded Signe to join Spurs…
“I didn't - she chose us first. You might not believe me, but she made that decision and she believed in the project. I was accustomed to a lot more than everyone else working with her and now I have the opportunity to bring her to Spurs. She believed in the project we have here and what we're doing. She believed in the staffing and the team she has around her, and she made that decision. She will tell you herself there was no pushing from me. And that’s maturity, she made a decision based on what was right for her career, not just based on me as a coach. I think that's really important to make that clear - she's not made the decision just because I'm here. She had a wonderful time of Brann when we worked together, but she needs to do what’s right for her career. She made a decision based on football, not just on me as a coach and she will tell you that as soon as you get to meet her.”
He was then asked what her best position is…
“Probably inside the pitch, as a 10, or longer term, and I’ve said it to her before, she’s probably one of the best box-to-box midfielders in world football. She has the capacity, she has the power in the engine to do that. She definitely has the technical ability but she also is very adaptable and fluid. She's played off the left for Norway, which is a position they maybe see her in, when she does well, so we'll have that flexibility, which enables us to be more unpredictable, enables our game to be a lot more dynamic.”
Martin on Eveliina Summanen being named Finland’s Player of the Year…
“I’m delighted for Eveliina. I think maybe (she’s) a player that sometimes goes under the radar a little bit, but goes about her work very classy and with a lot of quality. I think she is deserving of the award. Her leadership is done with the way she conducts herself and her behaviours on and off the pitch - very professional. She goes about her work very quietly, but you can see the noise it makes throughout the team. She's a massive role model for our younger players but not just the younger players, the players who are in the squad now. I'm excited for Eveliina moving forward, but I'm also excited for her to pick up that award because she goes under the radar a lot, I believe.”
Martin on Clare Hunt’s performances so far this season…
“Since I've come in, Clare’s been brilliant. She's put her head down, worked hard, with her work ethic and commitment to doing things is second to none. You would never question that with Clare. She's evolved parts of her game that we needed her to evolve and she's taken things on board, which we asked her to do. She's now in a position where she's performing at a very good level, she's getting recognition domestically and internationally, which is important for her growth as a player and for us as a team. She’s been brilliant in that position, and I can't have asked any more of her - she's given me everything. There are still areas (of improvement) for Clare, she’s not very old, so she's got a lot to learn still. She's very open minded and very big on education - and I want to make sure that we can help her reach new heights.”
Martin on Aston Villa’s strong record away from home this term…
“They’ve played Arsenal and Manchester United, so they've had some big results in those games. We’re under no illusion; they're a wonderful team. They have big attacking threats in the front line, but also in those wider areas. They’re very dynamic, very quick, but very skilful individuals one-v-one. They have a creative and combative central midfield area as well as a back line that's very robust and we know we have to make sure that we’re patient and we work hard with the ball. We’ve got to make sure we're ruthless when we get chances because they don't concede many and when they do give chances, we've got to make sure that we capitalise on them.”