Classy City cruise to Spurs win | OneFootball

A fantastic away performance saw Manchester City secure an emphatic 5-1 Barclays Women’s Super League victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

Aoba Fujino fired City in front midway through the first 45 after a neat give and go with Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw.

Quickfire headers from Dutch duo Vivianne Miedema and Kerstin Casparij gave City some breathing space at half-time.

Grace Clinton then marked her debut with our fourth, with Olivia Holdt's deflected effort pulling one back for Spurs before Laura Coombs completed the scoring deep into stoppage time.

What happened

Yet to concede a goal this season, Spurs came into the tie as one of the WSL’s in-form teams and they did well to frustrate City in the early exchanges, who were forced into an early change after Lauren Hemp went down holding her ankle after a sliding challenge on Jess Naz.

But Andrée Jeglertz’s side hit the front soon after, with Fujino playing a neat one-two with Shaw on the edge of the Spurs area before firing into the top corner for the opener.

Having set up our first, Shaw nearly made it two with an instinctive effort from a corner only to Lize Kop make an excellent reaction save on the line as City looked to turn the screw.

A second would follow before the break, though, when Miedema stole a yard at the near post and flicked a header over the line before Spurs could clear.

The Blues were clearly in the mood and, before the hosts could recover, Casparij landed a sucker punch with our third, rising highest after Kerolin’s initial effort had looped into her path.

It was just rewards for a professional first-half display, and that momentum continued after the break when the irrepressible Fujino was brought down after a buccaneering run into the Spurs area.

Shaw stepped up to do the honours, but saw her penalty saved by Kop as the hour mark approached, but City received a boost soon after when Grace Clinton was introduced for her debut from the bench.

The midfielder was involved in the build-up to another Shaw chance with 20 to play, feeding Casparij down the right who’s cross was headed onto the bar by the Jamaican.

Number four would eventually follow with ten to play though, as Clinton marked her return to Spurs with a first-time finish after being found by Kerolin.

The hosts would grab a late consolation when substitute Holdt fired in from distance, but it did little to dampen what was an impressive away performance from City.

And the visitors would complete the scoring deep into stoppage time when Clinton's deflected effort fell into the path of Coombs, who volleyed back across goal to make it five with virtually the last kick of the game.

Wow-ba Fujino

The Japan international’s introduction against Brighton was key to City’s win over Brighton last week, and Fujino was once again a standout performer for the Blues.

Playing in a more central role behind Shaw has brought the best out of the youngster, who gobbled up City’s first real chance of the game with a clinical finish.

Her energy was equally important off the ball, with Fujino more than playing her part in a high press which suffocated the hosts whenever they attempted to play out from the back.

Now in her second full year at City, Aoba’s early season performances have been nothing short of excellent.

Blindkilde Brown’s midfield bite

Young midfielder Laura Blindkilde Brown has been used in a slightly deeper role so far this season, with the subtle tweak showing early signs of success.

Her quality on the ball has never been in question, but the 22-year-old provided the perfect foil for Yui Hasegawa in a midfield two at Brisbane Road.

She was popping up all over the pitch, making intelligent runs to offer an outlet to team-mates or drag Spurs defenders into uncomfortable areas which we could exploit.

It’s a role she’s really grown into over the past two matches.

Clinton’s debut delight

Our win also provided City fans with our first chance to see Grace Clinton in action, coming on against a side she’d won WSL Young Player of the Year with in 2024.

The midfielder featured on the right of an attacking three and linked up well down the flank as legs began to tire.

Her first competitive minutes since the Euro 2025 final, our new recruit is going to go from strength to strength after showing some neat flicks and tricks during her cameo.

And her late goal, a smart first-time finish, capped off an excellent City display.

Teams

CITY XI: Keating, Prior, Greenwood (C) (Rose 64'), Ouahabi, Casparij, Blindkilde Brown, Hasegawa, Hemp (Kerolin 22'), Fujino (Clinton 64'), Miedema (Coombs 81'), Shaw (Beney 81')

SUBS: Yamashita, Layzell, Wienroither, Thomas

SPURS XI: Kop, Grant (Rybrink 64'), Nilden, Naz, England (C) (Holdt 77'), Hunt, Tandberg (Thomas 64'), Ahtinen (Vinberg 46'), Spence (Oroz 77'), Summanen, Koga

SUBS: Heeps, Graham, Gunning-Williams, Dennis

As a result

The victory moves City up to third in the WSL table for at least 48 hours, with six points from a possible nine.

We sit level with league leaders Manchester United and Arsenal, having played one more match than our rivals.

Up Next

City are in League Cup action against Everton on Wednesday 24 September.

Kick-off at the Joie Stadium is set for 19:00 (UK), as we look to begin our Group A campaign with a win.

Tickets are still available for the match. To get yours, click here.