Crystal Palace in ‘really good place’ ahead of Tottenham Hotspur clash | OneFootball

Crystal Palace are set to face London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at the VBS Community Stadium on Sunday. Head coach Laura Kaminski spoke to the press ahead of the Eagles’ upcoming Women’s Super League clash.

Regarding team news, the Eagles have their usual team available, aside those suffering with long-term injuries. One being Elise Hughes, who has taken ‘a big step’ and is back on the training pitch. New signings Ria Öling and Clarissa Larisey have joined the team in training. It is still uncertain whether they will be ‘ready and fit and firing’ to make their debuts against Spurs.

On the back of a tough 4-0 loss against Arsenal last weekend, Crystal Palace are focused on performing well against Tottenham Hotspur. With the home fans behind them, they are hoping to come away with three points on Sunday and edge away from the relegation zone.

Crystal Palace and the January transfer window

So far, Kaminski has only announced that two new players will be joining the squad: Ria Öling and Clarissa Larisey. Öling will be joining from Rosengård, and Larisey from BK Häcken.

When asked about what they can bring to the team, she assured: “They’re different players in the sense of they offer different attributes. Clarissa is a very quick threat, and has proved that in terms of goals. Ria will offer us a little bit of security, as well as being a fantastic ball carrier.”

However, Kaminski is not keen to rush them into the starting 11, stressing it’ll ‘take some time to build them in’. The duo are certainly going to make an impact when they are ready to play, but there will be no rush ‘at the sacrifice’ of their wellbeing.

“We want to push them to get ready and fit and firing. It’s a tactical balance that we have to get right.”

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Taking steps from the Championship to the WSL

While there is a clear gap in the WSL table when it comes to teams with larger investments, Kaminski asserted that Palace want to remain a competitive team who fight for every result.

“It’s important for my attitude and the players’ attitude, and the fans who come and watch us play, that we write no games off,” she said. “I’m very proud of each member of the squad, even the ones we kept from last year who have kept with us and stayed with us to be part of the journey.”

Last season, the Eagles were flying high with three points in most of their Championship matches. Now, they are struggling to pick up points against their new WSL rivals.

“I can only credit the squad as a whole on how they’ve dealt with that,” Kaminski continued. “I think it’s made them stronger both as players and footballers.”

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After gaining promotion to the WSL for the first time, Crystal Palace faced Tottenham in their first top flight match. Kaminski described this as a ‘massive learning curve’. The Eagles are now ready to attack their fixtures and get as many points out of the second half of the season as they can.

“We’ve got to get ourselves together again and try and get something out of the game,” the boss said.

With a ‘strong network’ at the club, the future is looking bright for the Eagles. The head coach is optimistic that her team can push up the table and outside the relegation spot, if they continue to work hard on and off the pitch. Kaminski confirmed she is ‘fully supported by Crystal Palace’ and are working hard every day to give her team the best chance of survival in the WSL.

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