Robert Vilahamn stated he was 'very happy' for Bethany England as the Tottenham Hotspur captain scored her first WSL goal of the season to secure a 1-0 victory against Bristol City.
England, who underwent hip surgery in pre-season and didn't feature in the WSL until December, has struggled for goals since returning. However, at Ashton Gate, she produced her best performance yet.
Her goal in the second minute epitomised the talent Spurs regularly saw last season. She cut in after latching onto Grace Clinton's through-ball, before firing a powerful shot into the bottom right corner. It delighted her manager when speaking to VAVEL post-match.
"She can run in behind, be very good linking [with other players] whilst [also] pressing. The performance today showed she's getting back, scoring goals and looks good," the Swede stated.
Tottenham remain sixth in the WSL, yet they are just three points behind Manchester United in fifth. It's been a season of transition for Spurs, yet their focus is now on the FA Cup semi-final, which Vilahamn is looking forward to.
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Vilahamn 'very happy' for England
England has been a key player for Tottenham even when she's struggled to score goals. She brings experience to the club, which - in an era of young and exciting players - is key at Hotspur Way.
However, she had to start scoring goals eventually. The captain's goal foreshadowed an important victory for Spurs at Ashton Gate — and Vilahamn is hoping it will build her self-confidence.
"I'm very happy for her. I mean, for me, it doesn't really matter to me who scores the goals, because the team scores goals, but for her working so hard and being on the bench for a few games, I'm very happy that she can come back and give that to the team and herself," he told VAVEL.
"It builds her self-confidence because she's a brilliant striker and strikers need goals."
Clinton played a crucial role in England's first WSL goal of the season, as her precise through-ball landed in the perfect area. The on-loan Man United playmaker worked as a number ten instead of out wide, which proved effective in the first half.
"She's not brilliant all game right now, but she's brilliant in those small moments. She's so good on the ball and I'm letting her play and that's going to help her development. She brought us that goal with a great assist to Beth [England]," Vilahamn said to VAVEL when analysing her performance post-match.
"She's taking steps because she's not consistently good every game, but she's 20 so that's normal. I like to keep playing her because she's learning stuff every week. She works hard in the defence [role] and she can now handle the number ten role, which I didn't think she would be able to at the beginning [of the season]."
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Vilahamn pleased to dictate the match
The encounter between the two sides in Bristol wasn't a memorable match in the WSL. After the opening goal, the Robins had chances to equalise, but there was very rarely belief they would actually make it 1-1.
It was Spurs' second 1-0 win in a row, yet Vilahamn believes it was a far better performance than the victory against Leicester.
"A far better performance than last week. In this game, we dictated and created chances. I think we played out from the back in a very good way," he stated.
"Looking good as a team and winning [is] always good, then, of course, we want to be scoring more goals. We had 19 goal chances and a few really good ones. Happy with the win and performance, but we can definitely improve."
Vilahamn's philosophy is all about attacking and aggressive football. It epitomises the club's slogan, 'To Dare Is To Do', and it has seen Spurs become one of the most entertaining teams to watch. Yet the Swede has also made Spurs more assured defensively — and that pleases him.
"When you look at how we press and keep them far away from our goal, that's also pleasing, because we want to be a high-pressing team. That's what you can see now. How we want to press our opponent, how we want to win those duels, but I also know if you get to 2-0 in these kinds of games, you probably win 3/4-0 and you get the self-confidence," he said.
"It's where we are in the journey right now. I think Becky [Spencer] has been brilliant since coming back. Amy [James-Turner] and Luana [Bühler] were great as well. We're taking steps but we want to score more goals."
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Preparing for the FA Cup semi-final
Spurs now have three weeks to prepare for the biggest match in the club's history — an FA Cup semi-final against Leicester at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The pressure is firmly on Spurs to deliver, yet - after giving the players a break - Vilahamn is confident they will be fully ready for the match in N17.
"We're going to make sure we have a good training next week, then the whole squad will be off for Friday, Saturday and Sunday. It's important for the national team players to also get a break," he said.
"Then we're going to train really hard for the players we have left. When everyone comes back from the international break, we're going to get ready for the biggest game and do everything we can to make sure we reach Wembley."
The three-week break will put a halt to Spurs' run of wins every week. For some managers, that would be disappointing, but Vilahamn isn't choosing to look at it that way.
"In one way, you want to keep playing when you win. In another way, it's nice to go into training mode with a few weeks on your back and you can feel happy about the last few games. I'm going to use that mindset. Then we're going to train well and prepare ourselves."