3 things we learned from Liverpool Women's 3-2 win over Spurs
By Luke Birch
An amazing Marie Hobinger double, including a brilliant free-kick and a stoppage time penalty, were enough to give Liverpool their first win of the season.
Here are three things we learned.
Liverpool’s resilience
Liverpool’s first two Women’s Super League games saw the Reds take the lead, before being pegged back, and finishing 1-1.
Liverpool too lost to Manchester United in the first game of the Women’s League Cup midweek.
This game saw Liverpool go ahead twice only to be pegged back, Liverpool had to lay to rest some demons in getting the win.
Additionally the match was featured on free-to-air in the UK, so the Reds showed extra resilience in making the comeback under an intense spotlight.
Manager Matt Beard told BBC Sport: “We showed immense character today and I'm really proud of them.
"We were always in front but I think when they peg you back, to get obviously back in front again was important.”
The win will give the Reds a much-needed boost ahead of the visit of Manchester City to Anfield next Sunday.
Hobinger’s double brilliance
Now in her second season with Liverpool, Marie Hobinger’s decisive double showed that she can step up to the plate after the departure of Missy Bo Kearns.
Hobinger, 23, placed her free-kick neatly in the top corner of the goal from just behind the D, going over the top of the wall and evading the goalkeeper’s outstretched hand.
The Tottenham goalkeeper got a hand to her penalty late-on but it wasn’t enough as the ball found the keeper’s bottom right-hand corner.
The poise that it took Hobinger to be able to deliver such a cool penalty under immense pressure is testament to her mental fortitude.
This is nothing new though, Hobinger scored a stoppage time equalizer at home to Spurs last season.
Olivia Smith’s arrival
New signing forward Olivia Smith had a breakout game for Liverpool before being substituted in the 75th minute.
Smith, 20, was a permanent thorn in Tottenham’s side, even flicking the ball over one of their heads!
She has already scored her first Liverpool goal against West Ham last weekend.
Smith is beloved among fans in her native Canada, and she is fast becoming a fan favorite in Liverpool.
The forward joined Liverpool from Sporting CP in Portugal this past summer and has hit the ground running.
Alongside fellow new signing and goalscorer in the Tottenham game Cornelia Kapocs, the new forwards can bring Liverpool into their next era.