Tottenham boss Rehanne Skinner has insisted there is still "strong belief" within her squad despite a disappointing run of form in the WSL.
Spurs have lost their last seven league games and, since the turn of the year, have also crashed out of both domestic cups. They currently find themselves ninth in the league - just three points clear of bottom-of-the-table Leicester - with this weekend's trip to Manchester City likely to prove another stern test for Skinner's side.
But while City have been in impressive form of late - and showed their title credentials with a 2-1 victory over Arsenal last time out in the top-flight - the Tottenham boss believes her side will do everything in their power to pick up some much-needed points when they travel to Manchester.
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"Every game that we have is a tough game," Skinner said. "We’re continuing to focus on the performances we’re putting in.
"The result has eluded us in the last few WSL games and so we need to try and get that on track. That’s not going to be easy to do this weekend but we’re in a good place. There’s a lot of belief in the team. I believe in my players and we’ll get results sooner rather than later.
"We’re moving forward in the right way and we’re going to give it everything we can to make life difficult for Manchester and try and get points out of the game. That’s the big focus for us."
She added: "We’re creating chances. We’ve scored goals against the likes of United and Chelsea. There’s loads of positives to take from the start of the New Year but its just the fine margins we’re not getting over the line at the moment.
"I’m 100% confident that we will get results and will finish the season strongly. I’ve got a strong belief in the players and in their capabilities and what we’ve got in our locker to be able to produce those results as a collective. We just want games to prove that point and get that result over the line."
And the Spurs boss is hopeful that her squad will be bolstered by the return of star striker Beth England to the matchday squad this weekend. England has scored three goals in three league games since arriving at Brisbane Road from Chelsea in January but missed Tottenham's FA Cup clash with Reading through injury.
"Beth had a knock in the Man United game which we’ve been managing," Skinner said. "We’re hopeful to get her back for the weekend.
"We’ve had a little bit of carry over from the international break and we’re still managing some people’s minutes as a result of that. We’re not actually sure where we’re going to be with a couple of players at the weekend but hopefully we manage to get everyone back on track."
Tottenham were beaten 3-0 when City travelled to the capital for the reverse fixture back in October, but Skinner is hopeful Sunday's performance will be more akin to Spurs' 2-1 victory at the Academy Stadium last season. On that occasion, Lauren Hemp opened the scoring for the hosts before a Rachel Williams strike and own goal from Karima Benameur sealed three points for Skinner's side.
"That particular performance was a really good example of when everyone is on the same page and communicating effectively and doing their job at the absolute highest level for 90 minutes," the Tottenham boss said. "That’s what you need to be able to beat the top three.
"Everybody’s got to be on their game all the time and I think we're moving into a space where it feels similar to that moment before Man City last season and if we can do the same thing again that’s unbelievable but we just want to keep developing in the way we are now."
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