Everton Women 1-1 Tottenham: Battling Blues earn point

Brian Sorensen felt the 1-1 draw with in-form Tottenham Hotspur was ‘ok’ but pointed to a lack of belief and structure from his Everton Women side.

Aurora Galli’s late penalty salvaged a point for the Blues after Grace Clinton had nodded the hosts in front just before half time.

Injury to Nathalie Bjorn and a bout of sickness from Nicoline Sorensen saw a change in personnel, as well as a shift in position for Justine Vanhaevermaet, who filled in admirably at the centre of defence.

Spurs, who were looking for their fourth straight league win, had their chances but found a stubborn Everton rearguard that was backed by the excellent Courtney Brosnan.

Katja Snoeijs should have done better with a free header on the half hour mark, while substitute Martina Piemonte saw an effort scrambled off the line before Galli slammed home from 12 yards.

But the Blues boss pointed to a lack of structure and confidence from his team, the latter something he felt they didn’t regain.

“I think I am happy for the first 35 minutes of the first half, then we got unstructured and made a couple of mistakes,” said Sorensen. “And then we didn’t regain confidence.

“We need to be consistent over 90 minutes to win against good teams.

“We had some big chances, I don’t recall them having as many big chances, but if you look at the game as a whole, 1-1 is ok.”

Both teams began on the front foot with Robert Vilahamn’s side keen to continue the good from that has seen them climb into the top four. Spence and Celin Bizet both tested Brosnan, who was equal to their efforts with impressive saves.

Then Everton had their big chance. Hanna Bennison’s cross found Snoeijs in space, but the Dutch striker’s header was gathered by Becky Spencer.

Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images

The Toffees were strong in the first half display but found themselves behind at the break following some good Spurs build up. The hosts worked the ball to Spence, whose cross was met by Clinton, who gave Brosnan no chance.

Sorensen rang the changes for the second half but it was the Everton stopper that was still the busier of the keepers. The league’s top scorer, Martha Thomas, and Clinton both tried to double the advantage but found Ireland’s number one in inspired form.

Everton continued to soak up the pressure and got their reward when Heather Payne was bundled to the ground inside the box on 85 minutes.

Galli made no mistake from 12 years, her emphatic drive securing a hard-earned point for the battling Blues.

Photo by Emma Simpson – Everton FC/Everton FC via Getty Images

And there will be no rest for Sorensen’s side, who travel to Manchester United in the FA Women’s Continental League Cup on Wednesday, 9 November, before hosting league leaders Chelsea in the WSL at Walton Hall Park four days later.