Manchester United Women ended the calendar year in style with a 4-0 win over Sheffield United Women in their final League Cup group stage game. The Reds cannot progress to the knockout stages despite us beating Everton a couple of weeks ago because results elsewhere meant this fixture was a dead rubber.
Nine changes were made to the side that played against Manchester City last weekend. Head coach Marc Skinner went with a 4-2-3-1 formation with only Millie Turner and Ona Batlle who was made captain retaining their places in the side from the derby. It saw starts for Baggaley, Tounkara, Thorisdottir; Staniforth, Boe Risa; Thomas, Leon, Garcia, and Williams.
United dominates the opposition in opening half
United put on an emphatic display in the opening half as they spent most of it in the opposition’s half. We were on the attack and creating many chances on goal with a number of long-range efforts being saved by Sheffield United’s goalkeeper Bethan Davies. The deadlock would be broken in the 12th minute when a corner whipped in saw Maria Thorisdottir’s shot blocked. The ball fell to Tounkara who played the ball to Adriana Leon to convert into the goal through a backheel.
The opposition defence was employing a deep low block as United looked to break them down and score more. We would be rewarded for our patience before halftime with a great team goal as Rachel Williams drove the ball forward from the midfield before passing it to Lucia Garcia who squared it across the six-yard box for Leon to grab her second of the game.
Second half SEES more of the same
The second half would see the Reds continue where they left off as we dominate on the ball creating plenty of changes on goal. Five minutes in, Martha Thomas crossed the ball into the box into the path of Garcia but the ball was turned in by the Blades defender Ellie Wilson to see United 3-0 up.
Just after the hour mark and the Reds had secured all three points with their fourth of the game as Rachel Williams’s through ball saw Martha Thomas’s strike go into the back of the net. The opposition did try to attack more in the second half with their best moment coming when a header was saved by Sophie Baggaley.
We also saw the debuts of Keira Barry and Alyssa Aherne as the Reds saw out the game. Even though United now exited the competition, the players gave an excellent performance for the fans to end the year on a high. We now look to focus on our league and FA Cup campaign in the second half of the season.
Head coach Marc Skinner was happy to end the year with the victory and looked ahead to what his team can achieve in the New Year.
“It’s a good way to end the year. The girls have worked extremely hard in this first part of the year but as soon as we go into the next part of the year, we want to be aiming for successes.”
Manchester United Women Head coach Marc Skinner speaking to MUTV