Thomas says derby win proves Spurs can compete with WSL elite

Martha Thomas says Tottenham's 1-0 win over rivals Arsenal proves her side can compete with the best in the Women's Super League.

A draw or a victory would have seen the Gunners go top after last weekend's 4-1 win over Chelsea but Jonas Eidevall's side slipped up in the North London derby.

Thomas' second-half strike proved to be the winner, with Spurs showcasing their defensive solidity up against an Arsenal outfit who had 60% possession and mustered eight shots on target at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Spurs' win in front of their jubilant fans means they will remain sixth going into the winter break.

Thomas said after the game: "We made a lot of changes on Wednesday [in the Conti Cup vs Arsenal] and put in a good performance then and thought we could continue that today. 

"The manager felt that the same team deserved to go out and play again today minus the one change. That's what we did.

"He told us to enjoy ourselves, play with freedom, like he always does. 

"But we've come off the back of two bad results in the league so we know we can compete against these teams and we have shown that today.

"It's a great win for us. It's been a tough week but I think we really deserved that. We put on a performance that we can be really proud of."

Thomas has proved to be a revelation at Spurs since joining from Manchester United in the summer.

The Scotland international's strike against Arsenal was her seventh in the WSL this season, moving her level with Brighton's Elisabeth Terland at the top of the scoring charts.