Spurs asserted their dominance early as Matilda Vinberg scored the opener inside seven minutes, sliding a composed finish past Elene Lete after a precision through-ball from Olivia Holdt. The visitors controlled much of the first half, though goalkeeper Lize Kop was forced into a stunning point-blank save from Nikita Parris to keep the lead intact at the interval. However, the game was turned on its head during a frantic two-minute spell after the restart.
Eder Maestre’s tactical tweaks proved inspired as substitutes Luca Corrales and Danielle van de Donk combined for a 58th-minute equaliser, before Jana Fernandez unleashed a spectacular 30-yard thunderbolt just 60 seconds later to put the hosts ahead. Spurs looked shell-shocked and appeared to be heading for a disappointing exit as the clock ticked deep into stoppage time, struggling to find any rhythm against a compact and energetic Lionesses defensive unit.
With their cup hopes hanging by a thread in the fifth minute of added time, Tottenham threw everything forward, including goalkeeper Kop. The pressure finally told when a goalbound header from Bethany England was blocked by the arm of Teyah Goldie on the line. Referee Ryan Atkin showed no hesitation in pointing to the spot, and England, the ultimate big-game player, showed nerves of steel to drill the ball home and force another 30 minutes of action.
Spurs boss Martin Ho admitted his side were not at their vintage best but praised the resilience of his squad to navigate a potential banana skin against the newly-promoted WSL side.
Speaking to the official Spurs website, Ho said: "I know the performance levels we can get to and we were nowhere near our best today, but we had lots of big moments with the ball. Then defensively, I thought we were brilliant, we had to ride our luck at times like they did too. But hopefully we just could have capitalised on a few more of those chances within the game. However, an FA Cup game under the lights that puts you through to a quarter-final and for the neutral, it was probably brilliant to see it go to penalties.”
He later reflected on the tension of the shootout, stating: "When it goes to penalties, I never watch them anyway, I think it's a lottery - it's probably the cruellest part of football. But, [it was] outstanding bravery and courage from the players to step up and take the penalties because, at big moments, it's a lot of pressure."
The victory sets up a tantalising last-eight showdown against holders Chelsea, scheduled for April 5. The Spurs boss now turns his attention to a revenge mission against the Blues, adding: "We've had a good game against them recently where we didn't come out on top, so we want to make sure we put that right."
The task remains a overwhelmingly daunting for the North London side, as Tottenham have never beaten Chelsea in 18 attempts. Their most recent encounter earlier this month in the FA WSL ended in a 2-0 victory for the Blues, a result Ho will be desperate to overturn in the cup.