Bristol City have work to put in after they were handed a 3-0 defeat by Manchester City in the Women's Super League on Tuesday. Attention now turns to the weekend and their trip to The Hive to face Tottenham Hotspur.The Vixens are fighting for their survival as they yo-yo in and out of the drop zone. West Ham's draw against Birmingham put the two relegation candidates on level points, with the Irons ahead on goal difference.For Matt Beard, it is imperative that Bristol survive the drop and keep their WSL status as he fills in for club manager Tanya Oxtoby, who is on maternity leave. Despite their struggles, they have shown flashes of quality throughout the season. Their most recent masterclass came against Reading in a five-goal thriller at Twerton Park, which lifted the Robins off the bottom of the table.However, their latest result sees them slip back into dangerous territory and with West Ham boasting a game in hand, Bristol can't afford any more slip ups between now and the end of the season.

A golden chance for Bristol

On paper, not many expected Bristol to come away with any kind of positive result against title contenders Man City. After shipping six goals against Chelsea in the Continental Cup final, a 3-0 loss is far from the worst thing that has happened to the Vixens this campaign.

The reverse fixture against Spurs ended a 2-2 draw, with goals from Chloe Logarzo and Ebony Salmon banking Bristol a point. This time round, Beard and his team mustn't settle for anything less than a win to see them keep the pressure on West Ham.

There's a good chance that they could secure all three points on Sunday, as Spurs are currently stuck in a run of poor form. The Lilywhites are without a win in their last five league appearances and they have managed to scored just twice in that time whilst conceding ten goals.

Beard made a total of six changes against Man City and was without both Salmon and captain Gemma Evans due to injury. If the young striker is out of action against Spurs, Bristol will be at a huge disadvantage, no matter how inconsistent Tottenham's recent form has been.

Salmon has scored six of Bristol's 13 WSL goals this season and is undoubtedly their driving force in attack. The Vixens will struggle to get a foot into Sunday's game without her influence and it will come as a boost for the north Londoners if they don't have to defend against her frightening pace up front.

With a huge goal difference of minus 47, Bristol must bank as many points as they possibly can if they want to remain in the WSL. There's no fine margins that can bail the Robins out of their relegation worries – they must dig deep and keep their defence tight if they want to send West Ham tumbling into the Championship.