‘We are not going to just sit there and surrender’ – Spurs boss Ho previews Manchester City | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Martin Ho says that he expects a reaction from his side when they face Manchester City this afternoon and that they will play their way in the North West.

Spurs were off-colour as they slipped to a 2-1 home loss to Everton last weekend. The result saw The Lilywhites lose ground in the race for European qualification.

When speaking to the media ahead of this afternoon’s trip to Manchester City, Spurs boss Ho said that he expects his side to bounce back from last weekend’s disappointment.

“I hope so, we should get a response,” Ho said. “It was uncharacteristic of ourselves the way we were but you can have games like that in football, we can have an off-day. We can’t have many of them and I don’t think we have had too many of them.

“You have to embrace it and evaluate what we did. I’ve done that as a coach in terms of how we approached the game, how we set up and what we did. We need to make sure we go into this game with the confidence and belief to put it right.”

Spurs slipped to a 5-1 defeat to Manchester City in the reverse fixture. Five different players got their names on the scoresheet for The Cityzens. Manchester City will be the favourites to win this game but Ho says that Spurs won’t hold back, they will perform their way.

He said “We are going to have to defend diligently, the concentration levels will have to be high and we know that we will have to suffer without the ball. 

“They are the highest possession-based team in the league, they dominate the ball quite well and they now have a totally different variance to their play, so they will play short or play direct when they need to. They will go back-to-front very quickly if they have to.

“With the quality that they have in the attacking third, they score goals consistently, create big chances, their relationships and understanding of each other on the pitch is very good.

“We know that we are going to have to suffer at times but we are not going to just sit there and surrender. We are going to be brave with the ball, play the way that we want to play. One game doesn’t define us but what does define us is how we perform to go forward because growth is the big thing for this team and this club.”

Reflecting on Manchester City’s surge at the top of the Barclays Women’s Super League table, Ho highlighted the team’s greater freedom and flexibility in their play this season.

He said “Maybe it’s about the flexibility and freedom that Andrée [Jeglertz] has given them. They’re so much more dynamic and versatile tactically and they have a real cutting edge. If you look at their goalscorers, they’ve had a lot of different goalscorers in the season.

“Goals are coming from different areas of the pitch and they have a very dangerous front-line with a midfield backing that up. The depth within the squad supports that. Their attacking flexibility and freedom within their team is definitely something you can see.”

Tottenham Hotspur’s Barclays Women’s Super League fixture at Manchester City kicks-off at 12pm.