The hearts of a thousand Tottenham fans were broken when Manchester United recalled Grace Clinton from her loan at the end of last season.
And when the midfielder returns to Leigh Sports Village on Sunday 13 October at 12:30pm – dressed this time in red instead of white – she will have the chance to break them all over again.
Clinton will be reunited with Spurs – but it might not be good news for TottenhamGetty
Seventh-place Tottenham travel to an unbeaten Man United for a crucial mid-table WSL clash which could prove decisive when it comes to the fight for Champions League football.
For Clinton, it marks a first fixture against the club who nurtured her rise to greatness during one of the most remarkable loan spells the league had ever seen.
Spurs fans much have watched on with bittersweet emotions last term, knowing the better the young Lioness got, the less and less likely it was that they would be able to keep her in North London.
Few players have had the kind of impact Clinton had during her year with Spurs, securing a comfortable top-half WSL finish for the club and helping them to their first ever Women’s FA Cup final.
The midfielder had scored four goals and collected four assists in her 20 appearances, as well as earning herself the PFA Women’s Young Player of the Year award.
Her performances for Spurs had also caught the eye of Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman, who handed Clinton her first England call-up.
It took the 21-year-old just 19 minutes on the pitch to score her first international goal.
And so, hoping against hope, Tottenham fans hung onto the slim chance they might just be able to keep hold of a player who promises to be one of the biggest stars of women’s football.
In his most recent press conference, Spurs manager Robert Vilahamn confirmed that was exactly what the team had tried to do.
Of course, Man United had finally glimpsed exactly how good Clinton could be and unsurprisingly, they did not want to let her go.
GettyClinton (R) looked completely at home in a Spurs shirt last season[/caption]
GettyShe needed just minutes to score her first England goal in a 7-2 victory over Austria[/caption]
“We were pushing to go really hard, but – when a club does not want to sell – we do not have any power,” Vilahamn revealed.
“No matter what we want to pay for her, when the club does not want to sell, it’s useless.
“The board was ready to push the button and buy her, but they were not winning to sell. We need to respect that and I totally get it. She’s a great player; I would not sell her if I was Man United.”
So in the end, the Red Devils took Clinton back off Tottenham – much as they had taken the Women’s FA Cup trophy off them in a ruthless 4-0 victory in the Wembley showpiece final last season.
Clinton had been ruled out of that match in an agonising twist of fate for the youngster, ineligible to face her parent club and forced to watch from the sidelines as her loan side crumbled.
But if her showings for Man United this season so far are anything to go by, she will be anything but inactive in this next fixture.
Clinton has already scored in both her first two WSL appearances for Man United, helping them to a resounding 3-0 win over West Ham and then an equally strong 2-0 victory over Liverpool.
She scored in the WSL against West Ham…Getty
Getty….and then once more against Everton[/caption]
If she continues her 100% WSL scoring rate against Tottenham, she will also break an impressive club record.
Clinton would become the first ever Man United player ever to score in her first three WSL appearances.
It is a run which has inspired immense praise from manager Marc Skinner, who has done well to deal with the pressure on his side so far this year.
“Forget her having the ball, that’s her super strength,” he said of Clinton.
“Off the ball, I have been really impressed and that is something I will judge her game on. When she does that properly as second nature, that is when we will really see the footballer she is.”
GettySkinner has been hugely impressed by Clinton who is back with the Red Devils after two seasons on-loan (the first was at Bristol City)[/caption]
Vilahamn admitted Clinton would be a test – but he also hinted that they may be well-placed to stop herCredit: Joe Toth/Tottenham Hotspur FC/Shutterstock
But while Tottenham may be loathe to face a player in such fine form, – especially fresh off the back of their 4-3 loss to Liverpool last weekend – their manager Vilahamn is confident their experience of Clinton can help them out.
“She’s scored goals in both games and is shining,” he said. “I knew that was [going to] happen. It’s just great for her.
“This game is going to be tough for us because we’re going to play against her, but – on the other hand – we play against good players every week.
“We’re going to have a strategy on how we’re going to play and we also know her well, so we also know perhaps how to stop her.”
