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Alex Morgan in contention to make Tottenham debut in north London derby

Morgan joined on transfer deadline day - GETTY IMAGES
Morgan joined on transfer deadline day - GETTY IMAGES

Alex Morgan could begin her Tottenham career in this weekend's north London derby, after coaches Juan Amoros and Karen Hill confirmed she is available for their FA Cup quarter-final.

The American superstar shocked the Women's Super League a fortnight ago when she joined Spurs on transfer deadline day on a year-long loan, and there has been major anticipation around when she will get her first minutes since. It was revealed on Thursday that she could well play as soon as this Saturday away to Arsenal. Unlike her four compatriots who signed for Manchester United and Manchester City over the summer, Morgan has been able to avoid quarantine since arriving in London last week, thanks to an exemption.

"The club were able to get Alex quarantine exempt," coach Hill said in a press conference on Thursday. "We followed all the right processes."

Amoros added: "We can't forget that she only landed last week and she's been training with us for a week. But at the moment she is one of our players and, as with everyone else, she can be selected to play because all the paperwork has been done. So I think we will have to wait almost until last minute to know that one."

They said Morgan, 31, had slotted into their team environment well but the American is not expected to be at her best yet, considering she gave birth to a daughter, Charlie, in May. Despite that, her new coaches said she has already shown her quality at training.

“She’s looking really well," Hill said. "She’s come so focused, so ready to be the best player that she possibly can. Coming back from having a baby she’s obviously not 100 per cent and she’s only been in a couple of our training sessions over the past few days. She’s got to be patient with herself but, Alex being Alex, she’s very demanding of herself. Where she is at the moment, she’s working incredibly hard in all aspects of her game and we don’t think it’s a million miles away from where she wants to be."