Presser Points | Spurs vs West Ham, Women's Super League | Martin Ho

Here's what he had to say...

Martin on the changes to the squad this summer…

"For us, as a team, it's not about replacing people. It's about making sure we progress, we evolve, we move forward - and that's what we've done with Shekiera [Martinez] and Kirsty [Hanson] too. We've brought in two players who've scored goals in the WSL and not just alongside them, we've brought in very good players in Victoria [Pelova], Caitlin [Dijkstra], Alice [Sombath], really key players, Selma Panengstuen, around the goalkeeping area. So, we know that bringing them in is going to add more quality, more competition and more depth to the squad."

Martin on closing the gap to the top four teams this season…

"We're trying to focus on what we can do and working towards what we've set out to evolve the team, be more sustainable over the long term, but work towards what we want this team and this football group to look like from a team perspective, but also from a wider perspective commercially. So, we're in a really good space, we've trained hard, we've had a really good pre-season and you want to be spoken about amongst those teams. Of course you do, but you only get that, I believe, if you earn the respect and the right to do that. That starts with performances, that starts with consistency within, not just on the pitch, but off the pitch behaviours too. I believe we can compete with anyone on our day. I've never said that we can't compete, I think what you need to find is a high level of consistency in those games where there's going to be small margins."

Martin on West Ham…

"We played them last season [on the opening day] and it was a good way to start. A London derby, a good opening game, good for Neutral, good for both sets of fans, but a very different, well organised [side], especially with personnel. Rita's [Guarino] had a very good pre-season and a full pre-season with her players to really embed what she wants, so we know it's going to be a different type of challenge. It's going to be a competitive derby. I know West Ham will be organised, effective and they'll have some very dangerous players."

Martin on what kind of game he could expect this weekend…

“What a better way to start than a London derby. We know West Ham are physically very strong, very dynamic as a collective, but very robust and organised as a defensive unit. They have some very, very dangerous players in that forward line that they've recruited, so I know they're going to be very competitive, it's going to be a different look compared to what we faced before. So, we have to, first of all, earn the respect of them by doing things properly, defend them properly and showing them that respect. I think the fans have played a huge part and I want to make sure that they feel that on the weekend. They feel the energy, the positivity around his squad and his team, and they can do what they did last year, push us forward and make sure that we build a really strong connection and fan base moving forward for however long I'm here.”

On the introduction of the Women’s legacy numbers…

“The leadership and the ownership of the Club have said it before - it's one Club, two teams, and it should be that way and it is that way. I know the leadership and ownership above us want that and have always wanted that since I've been here, and now you're giving recognition to the people that paved the way and those pioneers who paved the way for a lot of these players now. They've created the foundation for a lot of these players to build on top of and it's good recognition for these players to look back in the future knowing that they've made a mark within the environment, they've made a mark on this club, and it's something they should be proud of.”

Martin on what he has learnt from year one at the Club to take into his second year…

“I've done a lot of reflection, a lot more delegation, a lot more support for the players, a lot more support for my staff and me being better at making brave decisions, bigger decisions, because that's what I'm paid to do. But also, me trying to understand and bring the best version of myself every single day, giving myself a chance to reflect and a chance to be myself as Head Coach. Now, going into this season, I know that the players are ready for it, I trust every one of them, I believe in what we're doing, I believe in everyone in that playing group and I want to make sure that I can give them the confidence and belief to go out and perform every single week.”

Martin on Jhanaie Pierre’s first professional contract and integrating more Academy players…

“It's not that there hasn't been players around, we've had four, five, six players train with us consistently throughout. Maybe people don't see it because they're not always in the squad. To have her [Jhanaie] sign her first [professional] contract, I think a player who's lived and breathed this football club, I know it's a very strong ethos of this club to develop your own talents and she's definitely a very clear message of that. She's worked extremely hard, she's been around the senior team since I got here and she's been chomping at it to make sure she can prove a point and she can earn that contract. She's very deserving of it, she's a really humble individual, she's still got a lot of work to do and she knows that. But she's done extremely well and there'll be a lot more of them to come in the future.”

Martin on where he sees Amanda Nilden’s position in the future…

“The opportunity to use Amanda as a left-footed player in terms of centre-back, where she's got the speed, she's got the physicality and she's got the capabilities with the ball, it's just helping her grow and refine certain parts of her game. But what it definitely gives us from a tactical perspective more is you have two left-footed players on the left side of the pitch, which opens up the game more and enables you to play inside and outside the pitch - that just gives you a bit of the insight into it. But she can play dual position, and I think that's really important for us, that we have a player who can play in both of those positions, depending on what we're looking at within a game and the profile we need when we look at the opposition.”

Martin on challenging Shekiera Martinez….

“I want to make sure Shekiera understands in terms of where she can get to and where she's at now. I think she's at a very good level. We just need to help her find the consistency, but also, it's about helping her understand and us bringing out her real skill set. I think maybe at times she wasn't always able to show that and it's my job to make sure that she can see all of that. You can't be that good every single year as a player and there might have been things away from that that Shekiera was dealing with, with small injuries and so on. So, making sure now we have her fully fit, she's healthy and she's in a good frame of mind. We've got some player on our hands. She's dynamic, she's quick and she can finish in front of goal, as everyone's seen. We just need to make sure we get her in the right positions to score, and we give her the right service to enable herself to finish.”