United under pressure after City defeat
Having begun to find a rhythm to their play with style and swagger, Manchester United’s capitulation against derby rivals Manchester City was surprising. With United five points ahead of their neighbours going into the game, victory would have hugely damaged any hopes City had of Champions League football and kept them with a foot firmly in the title race. Instead, United are off the pace at the top and have City firmly on their heels. Manager Marc Skinner pointed to the reason for the underwhelming performance: “I just think Man City have a lot of experienced players who have been around this league for a long time, [whereas] we’re embedding quite a lot of players.” He’s right: the experience of winning leagues and being able to get results in high-stakes games cannot be underestimated. United held out until Caroline Weir’s stunning chip in the 81st minute. Against Arsenal the preceding week it was a sublime pass from Vivianne Miedema for Stina Blackstenius to put in that denied them all three points. United need to see out games against the WSL’s traditional top-three but that will come with time, experience and the pain of these late concessions still stinging. Now their mettle will be tested in the race for top three. SW
