DONE DEAL: Spurs Women sign Real Madrid co-captain Maite Oroz

Tottenham Hotspur Women have completed the signing of talented Spanish midfielder Maite Oroz from Real Madrid just ahead of the transfer deadline. The twenty-six year old joins for the next four years and will wear the number 10.

I’m not going to beat around the bush—this signing absolutely rules. After failing to sign Grace Clinton on a permanent basis and losing Kit Graham to another ACL injury, Spurs were in dire need of another attacking midfielder, and perhaps in even more dire need of someone who can progress the ball. Maite Oroz fits the bill perfectly.

Maite Oroz is—and I can’t overstate this—a phenomenal passer. A quick look at fbref tells me she passes a lot, extremely progressively, and with a great deal of accuracy. I don’t know if we’ve ever seen a passer like this at Tottenham, and to be quite honest, I can’t wait. With her ability to link up play and her excellent technical attributes, she’ll be a great fit for Robert Vilahamn’s possession-based style. As an added bonus, she seems surprisingly competent in the air for someone who measures in at about 5’1”.

Oroz joined Real Madrid in 2020 as a part of their first ever women’s squad. With Madrid, she registered 12 goals in 110 league appearances, with additional appearances in the Champions League (although it’s worth noting that Real Madrid don’t tend to make it very far in this competition). Oroz also has four goals in fifteen international appearances, and she was a part of the Spanish side that won the 2023-24 UEFA Women’s Nations League. Oroz didn’t play quite as much last year, but Real Madrid turned down other offers for Oroz this summer and even went so far as to make her co-captain ahead of the upcoming season, reaffirming their faith in her.

“At the end of the day, I was very clear when this door opened and the opportunity arose, I didn’t need to think twice, because it’s such a big club where I can really grow as a player and a person,” Oroz said in her welcome interview.

Oroz should fit right in alongside her former Real Madrid teammate and fellow brand new Spurs player, Hayley Raso, who she apparently spoke to before joining. Still, we should give her time to adapt to the WSL, especially given that the WSL tends to be quite physical, and Oroz is on the smaller side. I wish it hadn’t taken an injury to Kit to see us make a move like this, but all things considered, this signing is excellent news for our current squad. We’ve offered an excellent player in her prime a four year contract, so it spells even better news for the future.

So, let’s give a big, big welcome to Tottenham, Maite Oroz! I can’t wait to see what you can do.