Manchester United defender Aoife Mannion made her return to the pitch when the Reds capped off their warm winter training camp in Malta with a fixture against Champions Birkirkara FC at Hibernians Stadium.
As the only name on United’s injury list, she has worked hard to return to fullly-integrated training with the Women’s Super League side in November. And while she was a named sub in the final League cup action against Sheffield United, it was understood the 27-year-old had to wait until the new year to get valuable playing time.
Finally, the time came as she was named in the starting XI alongside regulars Ona Batlle and Maya Le Tissier in the back line. Mannion said: “It was so good today, obviously the scoreline was brilliant, I think it ended 10-0. For me personally, it was my first minutes after my ACL [Anterior Cruciate Ligament] injury.
