Kirsty Hanson: A Game-Changing Signing for Tottenham

Kirsty Hanson’s move barely flickered across the summer headlines. Big overseas names grabbed the spotlight, glossy unveilings and grand statements of intent filled the feeds.

Yet the most decisive signing of the Women’s Super League window might be the one that slipped quietly into north London.

The Scotland forward has left Aston Villa for Tottenham, and there is a strong case that Spurs have pulled off a piece of recruitment that could reshape their season.

From overlooked to unmissable

Hanson arrives as one of the league’s most dangerous forwards, not a prospect, not a project. At 28, she is coming off the best campaign of her career: 12 goals in 22 WSL matches, the third-highest tally in the division.

Only Khadija Shaw and Alessia Russo found the net more often.

That haul came in a Villa side that finished ninth and often struggled for rhythm. Hanson didn’t just score; she carried them. She was responsible for 43% of Villa’s league goals, led the top-five scorers for shots on target ratio at 50%, and still found time to create 16 chances – bettered by only two team-mates – while registering the most touches in the opposition box.

The numbers paint a clear picture. Hanson didn’t just finish moves, she drove them, sustained them, and then tracked back to help win the ball again. Defensively, she ranked among the standout performers in her position for tackles and interceptions.

This is the player Tottenham have quietly built their attack around.

A career reignited at Villa

Hanson’s rise last season looked sudden from the outside. It wasn’t.

Her four-year spell at Aston Villa was a steady climb, not an overnight surge. Before that, she had been part of Manchester United’s push to establish a professional women’s team, playing a key role in those formative years before her minutes began to dry up.

By the time Villa took her on loan in 2022, she needed a reset.

Low on confidence, short on rhythm, she arrived in the Midlands searching for a spark. Across 100 appearances, she found far more than that: 26 goals, two player-of-the-season awards, and a rebuilt sense of self.

"I've got to thank Villa so much. They know that I left on good terms. I really enjoyed my time," she told BBC Sport. "Everyone there helped me boost my confidence again. Hopefully, I can just build on that now, but I'm not putting pressure on myself."

The gratitude is genuine. So was the pull to leave.

Why Spurs, and why now?

"It was obviously a very tough decision to leave Villa," Hanson said, "but just looking at Spurs, you could see their ambition and each season they have been improving."

Tottenham finished fifth last term, a clear step forward but still short of the elite bracket. The target now is unapologetically bold: break into the WSL’s top three and reach the Women’s Champions League.

For that, they needed goals, grit and a sharper edge in both boxes. Hanson ticks every box.

The appointment of Martin Ho as head coach proved decisive. Hanson knows him well from his time as assistant at Manchester United between 2020 and 2023. Back then, he helped shape her game. Now he has made her central to his Spurs project, with the club paying an undisclosed fee to get it done.

"When they appointed Martin as manager, I think that was a big statement because he is one of the best coaches I've worked with," she said.

"I know he gets the best out of me with the detail he puts in. I really think that will push me further on in my career."

Ho wanted her. The club backed him. The message is clear.

A tougher Tottenham

Hanson has not walked into a comfort zone. Spurs’ summer business has been aggressive, targeted and ambitious.

Alongside Hanson, they have taken West Ham’s top scorer Shekiera Martinez, prised highly rated France defender Alice Sombath from Lyon, and added creative midfielder Victoria Pelova from rivals Arsenal.

That is not a squad being padded out. That is a starting XI being challenged.

"It’s going to be tough. I'm not expecting anything," Hanson admitted. "My main aim is just to be better because I've got so many levels to go to. Martin knows that as well."

Competition for places will be fierce. Hanson welcomes it.

"Training's been really tough. It was probably one of the toughest pre-seasons I've done so far. Martin is challenging us, trying to push us to our limits.

"That's what I really wanted, because I needed a challenge. I don't just want to be signed because they think I'm good, I want them to improve me."

She is not walking through the door as a star demanding guarantees. She is walking in as a relentless worker in a squad trying to climb a tier.

Fire, hunger and a new voice

For all the goals and data, Hanson’s self-assessment is strikingly blunt.

"I'm definitely comfortable [in the WSL] now but I still don't see myself as one of the best. I'm very critical of myself," she said.

"I knew the level of players that were here. I'm just so excited to learn from them. I'm also here to help others, because that's what I've done at every club."

She has grown off the pitch as well. The Scotland forward has a degree in sports coaching and talks about the game with the perspective of someone who understands the bigger picture.

Asked where she has developed most, she said: "I know what to do at different points in the game. I know how to calm players down."

"Previously when I worked with Martin, I was younger and I wouldn't have been able to cope with that as much. But now I've definitely matured a lot."

That maturity feeds into her on-field persona. Hanson doesn’t pretend to be the most naturally gifted player in the room. She leans into something else.

"I might not be the most talented but I've got a lot of fight and hunger in me. I literally run through a brick wall for my team. Hopefully I've showed them that."

For a Spurs side aiming to close the gap on the WSL’s superpowers, that mentality is as valuable as her finishing.

A quiet signing with loud potential

Tottenham open their WSL season at home to West Ham on 6 September, a London derby that will offer an early glimpse of how Ho’s revamped side is taking shape.

Hanson will not arrive to the fanfare of a marquee overseas name. She does not need to. Her record in this league, in this country, already speaks.

If Spurs do crack the top three and punch their ticket to the Champions League, the move that barely made a ripple in the summer might be the one everyone talks about in May.