The writing has been on the wall for a week or so, but now it’s official: Tottenham Hotspur have announced the permanent transfer of the club’s longest tenured player, utility fullback Ashleigh Neville, to Leicester City.
Not gonna lie, fam — while this is probably the right decision to move Ash on, it makes me sad. Neville, 32, has been at Spurs since 2017, joining Tottenham
Women from Coventry United the season just before Spurs promoted from WSL 2 to the top flight. A former primary school teacher who used to commute to London from the Midlands for training when the club was still amateur, along the way she has become a fan favorite. A dynamic and offensively-minded fullback, she was comfortable playing on both flanks and her ability to get forward saw her used frequently up field as an attacking midfielder at times, especially under Rehanne Skinner and Robert Vilahamn. Martin Ho has mostly used her as a traditional defensive back, and she’s been great this season, helping Spurs dramatically increase their defensive efficacy this season. She ends her Spurs career having made 191 appearances in all competitions, the first Spurs Women player to break 100 games for the club, ever.
But time marches on. Spurs have added a couple of new defensive players this month and this summer, including Matilda Nilden and Julie Blakstad, indicating Ho’s plans to refresh the squad for younger and hungry players. Neville has shown some signs of slowing down, and at 32 she’s nearing the end of her professional career. She’ll stay in WSL at Leicester and should fit in well there.
Make no mistake, Ashleigh Neville is a Spurs Women club legend. Spurs Women managing director Andy Rogers had this to say on the club’s website:
“Ash’s contribution to the Club has been immense. She has been influential on our journey to establishing ourselves as a Women’s Super League team, and she departs as an undisputed Club legend.
“A true pioneer of the Women’s game on and off the pitch, Ash has always shown love and care to her teammates, staff, and our supporters. From helping us break into the top flight, to representing us at Wembley Stadium in our first-ever FA Cup Final, we are forever grateful to Ash and wish her all the best for the future. Forever a member of the Spurs family.”
The only thing that never changes in football is the fact that things always change. I will miss Neville’s distinctive helmet hair, her bombarding runs up the flank, and her incredible drive to be the best she can be. Good luck, Ash. We’ll miss you. Put her statue right beside Erik Lamela’s.
