Preview: West Ham United Women vs Tottenham Hotspur | Key Stats & Predictions | WSL Week 17
We look ahead to tomorrow's London derby at Chigwell Construction Stadium with our West Ham vs Tottenham prediction and preview. Can the Hammers extend their strong home form against struggling Spurs?
📅 Date: Sunday, 23rd March 2025
⏰ Kick-off: 12:00 GMT
📍 Venue: Chigwell Construction Stadium
📺 How to Watch: Sky Sports
🔍 Match Context & Overview
West Ham United host Tottenham Hotspur, with both teams experiencing contrasting emotions. The Hammers enter the fixture with renewed confidence following their impressive 1-1 draw against Manchester City, while Spurs are looking to halt a concerning four-match losing streak in the WSL.
Just two points separate these two sides, with Tottenham occupying 7th place (17 points) and West Ham in 9th (15 points). However, home advantage could prove decisive, with the Hammers collecting an impressive 14 of their 15 points this season at home.
🔨 West Ham's Home Fortress
West Ham's home form has been the foundation of their season with four wins from eight matches at the Chigwell Construction Stadium (4W, 2D, 2L). Their impressive home record contrasts starkly with their dismal away form, where they've collected just one point all season.
Rehanne Skinner's side has shown significant improvement in recent weeks, collecting 7 points from their last 5 matches (W-L-W-L-D). Defensively solid at home, West Ham boasts the league's highest clearance rate (32 per match) and second-most successful tackles (16.1 per match).
The Hammers' attacking output has been respectable, scoring 21 goals in 16 matches (1.31 per game), with their home record particularly impressive at 1.63 goals per home game. Their expected goals (xG) of 20.6 suggest they're converting chances at an appropriate rate.
🐓 Tottenham's Away Day Blues
The transformation under Robert Vilahamn has stalled in recent weeks, with Spurs losing four consecutive league matches after a promising start to 2025. Their away form (1W, 2D, 4L) suggests this will be a challenging fixture for the North London side.
Tottenham's defensive frailties have been particularly concerning, conceding 34 goals in 16 league games this season (2.12 per game) — the second-worst record in the division. Their expected goals against (xGA) of 24.0 indicates significant defensive underperformance.
Spurs will take confidence from their 2-1 victory in the reverse fixture in November 2024, but their recent form suggests they'll need to produce a significant improvement to replicate that result. Their record of three consecutive wins against West Ham offers some psychological advantage.
🔥 Key Battle Areas
West Ham's defensive solidity vs Tottenham's depleted attack will be crucial. The Hammers lead the league with 32 clearances per match, while Spurs will still be missing their top scorer Bethany England (8 goals) through injury, significantly impacting their offensive threat.
Set-pieces could prove decisive, with both teams showing vulnerability from dead-ball situations throughout the season. West Ham has created more goal-scoring opportunities from set-pieces, which could be an area to exploit against Spurs' defensive fragility.
key stats:
West Ham: 15 points from 16 matches (4W, 3D, 9L)
Tottenham: 17 points from 16 matches (5W, 2D, 9L)
West Ham's home record: 14 points from 8 matches (4W, 2D, 2L)
Tottenham's away record: 5 points from 7 matches (1W, 2D, 4L)
🏆 Head-to-Head (Last 10 WSL Meetings)
Tottenham hold a historical advantage in recent years:
Tottenham wins: 5
Draws: 3
West Ham wins: 2
The goal statistics highlight the competitive nature of this fixture:
Tottenham have scored 15 goals against West Ham
West Ham have managed 12 goals against Tottenham
70% of matches ended with a one-goal margin or draw
Recent meetings at the Chigwell Construction Stadium have been particularly dramatic, with an average of 3.25 goals per game. The most recent encounter at this venue produced a thrilling 4-3 victory for Tottenham in January 2024.
🔎 Players to Watch
Viviane Asseyi (West Ham)
The forward has 5 WSL goals and 5 assists this season, leading her team in both categories. Her set-piece delivery and penalty-taking responsibilities make her West Ham's most dangerous attacking threat.
Amber Tysiak (West Ham)
Leading the WSL with 7.9 clearances per 90 minutes, her defensive organisation and aerial dominance will be crucial to nullifying Tottenham's attacking threats. Her 111 clearances this season highlight her importance to West Ham's defensive structure.
Martha Thomas (Tottenham)
With top scorer Bethany England sidelined through injury, Thomas becomes Tottenham's key attacking threat. Leading the team in shot-creating actions (2.88 per 90 minutes), her movement and link-up play will be crucial to Spurs' attacking plans in England's absence.
Ashleigh Neville (Tottenham)
Leading the WSL with 3.6 successful tackles per 90 minutes, her defensive workrate and forward runs provide crucial balance to Tottenham's play. With 76 tackles (57 won) and 32 interceptions, she's the backbone of Spurs' defensive efforts.
📌 Prediction
Our AI model, trained on historical data and recent form, forecasts:
West Ham win: 48%
Tottenham win: 31%
Draw: 21%
Key Factors:
West Ham's strong home record (14 points from 8 matches)
Tottenham's poor recent form (4 consecutive defeats)
The Hammers' defensive solidity at home
Tottenham's previous success in this fixture
West Ham's improving momentum under Rehanne Skinner
📢 Have Your Say!
Can West Ham continue their impressive home form? Will Tottenham halt their concerning losing streak? Which players will prove decisive in this crucial WSL mid-table clash? Drop your predictions in the comments!