Robert Vilahamn has reiterated that he continues to feel supported by Tottenham Hotspur’s board, despite losing five of their past six WSL matches.
A 3-0 defeat to rivals Arsenal last weekend highlighted that Tottenham are still on a journey. The gap between the ‘big four’ and the rest is significant, but Spurs remain confident that they will eventually bridge the gap if they have “time” and “patience.”
Vilahamn, 41, has only been at Spurs since the summer of 2023, guiding the club to an FA Cup final in his first campaign. He has no doubt that the board believe in his philosophy as well.
“I speak to board members every week and I can promise you they are giving us support. It's not an issue there at all, to be honest,” he said.
"The main thing we do with the men and the women is that we look at: where are we? How do we perform now? We look at data, we look at everything. The run we have had with some of the games is tough, but we have lost those games, so we can’t do anything about that.
"The only game we won against a top-five team last season was Arsenal. Of 10 games, we won one. I can promise you in that game, we did not have much possession or many goal chances.
“If you expect us to win against the top teams, it's too early to expect that. You should have hope for it, you should aim for it, and we should try to do it, but if we don't succeed with individual details and tactical details, we lose those games because those squads are much stronger than ours right now. The board knows that. They know what we're doing, they know how much we're going to invest every year to grow organically.”
Spurs face Aston Villa in the League Cup tomorrow, and Vilahamn hinted he will name a slightly rotated team. A win for the Lilywhites against Robert de Pauw’s side would put one foot in the quarter-finals after they won their opening group stage match 2-1 against Charlton.
The League Cup is often an opportunity for sides to give minutes to squad players. Vilahamn has backed this claim previously — and, despite Tottenham winning just one WSL match this campaign and coming off the back of a 3-0 defeat, that remains the same tomorrow.
“It’s a mixture because this time we play on a Saturday. It’s normally when you have a midweek game, then it’s very good to rotate the squad,” he told VAVEL. "I think now we are in a situation where we should find a way to bounce back and get good self-confidence in the squad, but I still want to make sure we use the squad.
“I would say you're going to see a few new faces, but it's also going to [include] some players who featured last game. I think it’ll be a really strong 11 we put on the pitch and a strong squad for tomorrow. It's a good way for us to bounce back after a few really tough games.”
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Vilahamn expecting "tough" match against Villa
Vilahamn’s and De Pauw’s have already met once this season, with Bethany England scoring a last-minute equaliser at Villa Park to seal a 2-2 draw for Spurs.
Aston Villa have had contrasting emotions all campaign, playing free-flowing football, but only picking up their first WSL win of the season on Sunday – a 3-2 win against Crystal Palace.
After already playing them once this campaign, combined with their overall performances, Vilahamn is expecting another tough match.
“It’s quite interesting this season with some results, performances and who's winning games,” the Swede told VAVEL. “I think Crystal Palace had some really good chances against Aston Villa the other game and came back. Then there was a brilliant goal from Ebony Salmon. When we played Aston Villa, we didn't reach the level we wanted.
“We still got a draw, which was good. But we also know that the only way for us to improve and beat Aston Villa is to make sure we nail the gameplan the way we want to play and the way we want to press. If we do that, we know that we can compete against Villa.
“I'm also aware that they have signed some really good players this season. They have a new coach. They have been quite good in many games, so it's going to be a tough match. But I've learned in this league, in this country, that all of the games are extremely competitive. You need to be on your toes. You need to make sure you do the right stuff, otherwise you have a tough day.”
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