Ashleigh Neville has praised the class and expertise of new signings Beth England and Mana Iwabuchi following Tottenham Hotspur’s 5-0 win over London City Lionesses in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday afternoon.
England and Iwabuchi helped ignite Spurs’ second-highest win of the season with their respective first-half goals, which gave Rehanne Skinner’s side a 2-0 lead heading into the interval.
The goals marked England’s second in three appearances while it was Iwabuchi’s first since her shock move to the north London club, on loan from Arsenal, and both showed welcome moments of ruthlessness in front of goal - a situation that has frustratingly eluded Spurs of late.
READ MORE: Tottenham cruise into FA Cup fifth round as new signings shine in victory over Lionesses
As the second half got underway the Championship leaders could do little to halt the control of the home side's two new recruits’ as their combination play set Spurs on their way.
Neville, making her first appearance for Spurs since her three-match suspension in December hailed the impact the duo have had on the squad already.
“Their experience and quality on the ball is obvious,” she told Spurs’ media team after the win. “You can see with Mana, she’s great with the ball technically and Beth just brings something different upfront. They bring a huge boost to the team.”
The full-back’s sentiments were echoed by manager Rehanne Skinner, who believes the partnership forged between the pair will only grow stronger as the season progresses.
“We just need them to spend more time together as a collective,” the manager said. “I think that’s always the case when you bring new players in. Everybody is trying to figure out how to be on the same page and find their strengths together, so it just comes from playing match minutes together.”
The win sees Spurs register only their second win in seven matches, and Neville maintained the convincing win can help inspire Spurs to end their abysmal five-match losing streak in the league when they welcome league runners-up Chelsea to Brisbane Road next week, to whom they fell to a 3-1 loss in the FA WSL fourth round last week.
“We played Chelsea last week and we have a point to prove against them when they come next week,” Neville said.
Tottenham welcome current champions Chelsea to Brisbane Road next Sunday, followed by a visit from league leaders Manchester United the following week.
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