🔗 Share this article

Just as bad weather swept through the north-west the previous evening, the home side overwhelmed Manchester United away at the their home ground. It was a statement 3-0 win for Andrée Jeglertz’s side owing to goals from Knaak, Bunny Shaw and Hemp. It was a performance that clearly signaled their championship potential as they strengthened their standing at the WSL pinnacle.

Successive Setbacks for Manchester United

This scoreline signalled back-to-back WSL defeats for Skinner's side for the initial occasion since May 2024, putting them seven points off the top team with their championship aspirations hanging by a thread.

The Red Devils' capacity to balance league and continental football with a limited squad has been a hotly discussed subject since they qualified for the UCL. Looking at the fixture list, it always seemed this was the matchday that would seriously challenge this ability. Unfortunately for the visitors, they seemed weary from start to finish, the memorable win against Paris Saint-Germain clearly having taken a toll.

Team Changes

The United manager had sought to rotate the squad with a a few changes. Toone, Elisabeth Terland, Dominique Janssen and Leah Galton all provided energy, although the exclusion of the high-performing Melvine Malard to the sidelines was questioned.

The hosts, in opposition, have no such fitness worries. Jeglertz made one adjustment from last week’s win over the Toffees with Hemp making her initial starting appearance since recovering from injury.

Dominant First Half

The pressure started to accumulate for the United boss and his squad from the first whistle. This was a show of the strength from Manchester City whose energetic offense controlled and pulled the visitors apart with a superb first half display that saw them net a trio in just over twenty minutes.

This left the home team completely dominant and had Manchester United disorganized. Prior to this match, United had conceded just a handful in this WSL season but they fell apart in the wake of Manchester City's attacking flair.

Initial Opportunities

The warning signs came soon when Miedema used her physicality to muscle Zigiotti off the ball, only to drag her shot wide. Lauren Hemp was at the center of everything in the beginning, exploiting the room left by Riviere down the visitors' wing. Her passes were creating danger and led to an opportunity for Hasegawa that Anna Sandberg scrambled off the line.

United had several forays forward, their long-ball tactic giving them alternatives in the wings but they could not challenge the City goalkeeper. Manchester City, on the other hand, controlled the ball, probing their rivals and trying to draw them out of their structure.

Scoring Spree

They converted their dominance with almost half an hour played when Fujino won the hosts a set-piece. A ball to the back post was nodded across goal by Bunny Shaw for Knaak to nod home. It was Manchester City's seventh header of the term.

They extended their lead with two more goals just before the interval. When Jade Rose was allowed to drive through the center from the back, the play became spacious for City. The prominent Casparij received possession on the right side before providing a precise driven ball for Bunny Shaw to tap home. A short time later, they had a additional score after a quick change in the ball saw Lauren Hemp allowed the space to drive a effort home from distance.

Final Period

The primary change came from the United manager at the half-time as Malard entered for Terland but by this time it was too late to change the course of the game. Ex- Manchester City player Park came nearest, striking the upright, but the visitors were offensively poor and did not manage to record a one shot on target.

The home side, in contrast, could have extended their advantage when a superb Vivianne Miedema pass sent Shaw away only for her to miss the chance but it was insignificant to the hosts. Having failed to beat any team who ended above them in the prior term, the manager's side now have wins against Arsenal and United to position them in a commanding situation after nine matches.