WSL LIVE: Arsenal beat Spurs in north London derby, Brighton edge West Ham

Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham boss Robert Vilahamn speaking to BBC Sport: “It is tough to get that early goal again. It is mentally tough, especially when you come in with a game plan. The first half was not good for us, we tried to find a way to stop them but they are very good.

“Second half was much better, we tried to get higher up the pitch, we pressed better, had more of the ball, but on the other hand Arsenal got another goal and secured the win.

Frustrated? “It is not fun to lose. Today in front of the fans we wanted to play for them and to win for them. Today we made them disappointed so it is hard to be anything but disappointed.”

On poor defensive record: “We had a game plan today to try and have a different shape but it did not work. We had some tough games in a row and we have lost confidence. It destroyed a bit of the self confidence how we handled things.

“Let’s get to the next lot of games and try to improve and after that we will see if it is a big problem or if we can fix it. We can press, we can defend well it is more having those games in a row and that has pushed the confidence too low. We need to find a way to get that back.”

Still a gap to the top? “Everyone knows that there is a big gap. The top teams win all the time and a lot with big margins. The problem is that it takes time to close that gap.

“Last year we started that journey and this year we have hit a bad run but we are going to try and build it back. It is not going to kill us but it is tough now losing games. We don’t need to lie, we are not ahead of those top three teams.”