I was a full-time teacher who idolised Arsenal legend – now I'm eyeing Champions League with Tottenham

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Nowadays, Tottenham’s Ashleigh Neville spends her time tackling some of the WSL’s most talented stars.

But once upon a time, it was primary school children and PE lessons that the ex-teacher was having to tackle.

Last season, Tottenham pulled off one of the shocks of the year as they defeated Arsenal in the north London derby for the first time in their history.

It was a game which saw Arsenaltake 31 shots – but Martha Thomas’ in the 58th minute was the only one that counted.

And Spurs will be looking to get one over on their local rivals once more when they welcome Arsenal to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday 16 November, with tickets available here.

For Neville, the side’s longest serving player, the achievement was no doubt all the more rewarding – especially given her remarkable journey to the WSL.

“I think it’s crazy to look back and think that obviously I’ve been at the club (for so long) – this is my eighth season now,” she said.

“But the first two seasons I was here, I was teaching and travelling up and down, back from Birmingham to London, back and forth.

“And it was hard work. But then I think you kind of look back and you think, well, it was kind of worth it.

“Now I’m here being a professional footballer, kind of from day to day and I’m not really sure I ever want to finish that. I don’t ever want to think about the last time I step on a pitch.

“But yes, it’s incredible and I’ve stuck with the club and the club has stuck with me and believed in me and we’re going all in the right direction.”

Given what Neville has meant to Spurs over the years, it is no surprise that she is still one of the first names onto the team sheet.

After all, she made her presence felt from the moment she first donned the Tottenham shirt back in 2017.

In her first season at the then-Championship club, she was named the side’s Player of the Season having started all but one of their games that year.

The next season, she made history by becoming the first defender to ever win the Women’s Championship Player of the Month award after she bagged two match-winning headed goals.

And not long after that came one of the most important moments in the side’s history.

In May 2019, Spurs found themselves on the brink of history as they attempted to hold on to a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa in the Women’s Championship.

Tottenham Women knew the draw would be enough to send them up to the WSL for the very first time.

Then, it seemed as though disaster had struck.

With just seconds on the clock, Villa earned a free-kick in a lethal area and consequently drew a fantastic save from Spurs’ keeper.

But as Villa striker Jade Richards pounced to try and finish off the move, it was Neville who emerged the hero.

A vital goal-line clearance saved the day and ultimately sent her side to the top-flight, where they have remained ever since.

Neville has scored 16 goals in her 164 appearances at the club and is much-loved by fans of the club for her many years of service.

In an era when long-term spells at a single WSL club are not common things, the defender has remained the beating heart of this side throughout a key phase of its evolution.

“I just love it here,” she explained. “The players that the club brings in always fit in with the kind of players that I want to be playing with, along with the philosophy and what we want to build moving forward and what we aim to do in the future.

“I love coming to work here every day, so I can’t really ask for much more.”

But things could have been very different indeed though, given that her footballing idol happens to be something of an Arsenal legend.

“I think (my idol) was always Kelly Smith for me when I was younger,” Neville admitted with a smile. “I used to be a striker, at one point!

“I kind of slowly moved back further down the pitch. But yes, she was the person I always kind of looked up to and I’ve been quite lucky to meet up with her and have a chat and do bits with her. But she was the one I always looked up to.”

Now, Neville is the one being looked up to by so many of the Tottenham fans who flock to watch the side – more so after their achievements last season.

Not only did they make it into the WSL top six, having battled relegation at one point the season before, but they also stunned Manchester City on the way to their first ever Women’s FA Cup final.

While the eventual defeat to Man United was not what they would have dreamed of, it was a magnificent achievement – and a sign of bigger things to come according to Neville.

“I think we’ve ticked off quite a lot of things on my list when I’ve joined the club and we got promoted to WSL,” she said. “Then we’ve established ourselves in the league now, obviously making the FA Cup final last year.

“So, I think the Champions League is next on our list and we know that it’s not going to happen overnight and we’ve got to build and trust in the process that Robert and the club have here and I think all the players are buying into that.

“So, I think that’s the aim for me personally. I know the club has got that on their radar as well, so it’ll be really exciting if we can make that happen.”

Tottenham vs Arsenal is live on talkSPORT on Saturday 16 November from 1:45pm.

Tickets to see the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium are available here.