09 May 2023 , 12:44
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It’s one of the most riveting WSL title races in recent memory with the four-way battle going down to the wire.
Such an affair is scintillating fodder for anyone, but for those down at the bottom of the WSL table battling to avoid the tentacles of Championship football, the margins are equally as fragile and the battle almost more desperate.
Three points separate bottom-of-the-table Reading, Tottenham and Leicester, while Brighton, armed with new manager Melissa Phillips, have managed to wriggle themselves five points clear of the drop zone.
Safety, though, is a delicate notion, and anxieties are high for those staring down the relegation barrel.
Brighton must still face relegation-rivals Leicester on the final day of the season after a crack at Everton, while Leicester will fancy their chances against a West Ham side that have failed to secure a league win since November.
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Meanwhile, Reading could lift themselves out of the relegation hotbed with an away win over Spurs in their next WSL fixture, a necessity if the drop is to be avoided given their unenviable task of Chelsea on the final day.
An engrossing four-way relegation battle awaits. Our Mirror writers discuss which team looks destined for the drop and who will claw themselves to safety.
Jack Lacey-Hatton - Tottenham's lack of fight may see them drop
When you look at the weekend’s results combined with the current WSL table, Reading are the obvious candidate. But I’ve really feared for Tottenham throughout the season, particularly since Leicester made it clear they fancied making it a scrap rather than sinking without trace. So I’m not going to change my opinion now.
Ever since January, I’ve had a growing feeling that Spurs could slide towards the sole relegation spot and they’re still far from out of the woods, despite Reading’s poor defeat at home to Aston Villa on Sunday. Tottenham seem to have spent the year not really sure what to do with their women’s team.
Spurs' Drew Spence looks dejected during loss to Manchester United (Photo by George Wood - The FA/The FA via Getty Images)After such a positive season last year, they have become extremely complacent and it wasn’t until they were beaten by Liverpool in March that they finally understood they were in a battle to avoid the drop. Home games have felt soulless at Brisbane Road, although they have countered this by switching the Reading game to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for a men’s-women’s double header next week, having also moved their recent game against Brighton to the world-class arena.
They also sacked Rehanne Skinner without a long-term replacement lined-up. Although Vicky Jepson is doing the best she can in tough circumstances, it’s hard to see her in charge next season. It has all the hallmarks of lacking a cohesive, clear strategy - no wonder Daniel Levy wants the WSL to become a franchise league without relegation.
One of the easiest ways to get relegated in any league at any level of football, is by not realising how bad you are until it is too late to do anything about it. That is exactly the trap Spurs have fallen into this year.
The sole shining light that might save them is Beth England, who dragged them to a crucial win over Leicester and an essential draw with Brighton. England could do the same when Spurs meet Reading next week and her quality could prove the difference between going down and staying up.
The Royals have had a grim few weeks, with the men’s sides’ relegation hardly helping matters. But often dire situations like that can galvanise a group of players.
Reading have also had a real trick throughout the season of picking up a result unexpectedly, like when they beat Spurs 1-0 back in November. I fancy them to do the same next week and if they can, Spurs could be staring at life in the second tier.
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Reading suffered a 5-0 loss to Aston Villa over the weekend (Photo by Warren Little - The FA/The FA via Getty Images)Hannah Pinnock - Concern deepens for Reading
Four teams still find themselves at risk of dropping into the Championship next season, although Brighton are the closest to safety as things stand. For the remaining three, everything is to play for in these final few games.
The likelihood of Reading dropping out of the WSL increased drastically on Sunday following their heavy 5-0 loss at home to Aston Villa. There is huge pressure mounting on them ahead of their final two fixtures, one of which is against Chelsea on the final day.
Leicester have to get something from Chelsea, West Ham or Brighton but given their current form, it’s hard to see them losing all three games. Willie Kirk has done a fantastic job in the second half of the season and it’s a credit to him and the players that they’re probably the favourites to survive the drop, along with Brighton.
Reading's Grace Moloney (Photo by Mike Owen - The FA/The FA via Getty Images)Ultimately, Reading are running out of time. They were poor defensively against Villa and if they perform even close to that against Chelsea it could be another very heavy defeat. Everything rides on the visit to Tottenham next week but it’s fair to say they are clinging on.
With a less favourable run-in, it’s hard to see them clawing their way out of the abyss. They’ve shown in flashes this term their grit and resilience but confidence will have taken a significant beating against Villa.
That being said, the race is by no means run and this will go right to the wire.
Megan Feringa - Reading look doomed... unless Spurs capitulate
If Spurs chairman Daniel Levy had his way, this debate would be totally bootless. But for now, Levy's Spurs remain mired in the sticky stuff and unless a show of fight is had in the next two weeks, could be unceremoniously dragged under.
If anyone had dogeared Spurs for a potential drop into the Championship this season, the prescience is impressive. Fortunes have taken a sharp turn since their fifth-place finish last season and while relegation battles can often spiral into complicated mathematical equations, Spurs face a very simple ultimatum heading into their final two matches: glean a positive result against Reading at home in two weeks time and safety is effectively guaranteed.
On paper, Spurs should do. Kelly Chambers’ Reading sit three points behind Spurs at the table’s bottom and have taken just one point from a possible 10. Performances have quivered. The 5-0 thrashing by Aston Villa is encouraging for Spurs, who held the latter to a 3-3 draw last month.
Still, Spurs’ last outing against Manchester United hardly made for positive reinforcement, and an all-or-nothing showdown at Spurs stadium in an historic WSL/Premier League double-header can crack the nerves of even the most resiliently determined.
Spurs were dealt a 3-0 loss by Manchester United in the WSL over the weekend (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall - MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images)“Flight or fight” is the diagnosis Spurs interim manager Vicky Jepsen prescribed for the remainder of the season, and its difficult to ignore the operative word in 'fight'. Whether Spurs have shown enough in recent weeks is a futile meditation. It's about showing it now.
The obvious point to make is Spurs’ Beth England factor. While hinging an entire safety mission on one player's shoulders is unfair, the Lioness has increased Spurs' overall goal tally by an incredible eight since her arrival in January and her influence in holding up play and attempting to create something of substance in attack is notable.
For the Royals, it's bleak reading if they don't pull off an upset in front of a baying Spurs stadium.
They face Chelsea on the final day, a prospect that even the most blindly optimistic football fan will consider with a grimace.
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