By Catherine MacKenzie (02/05/2025)
Above: United boss Marc Skinner. Photo: Martin Rickett / PA.
A derby day in Manchester is always special. This Sunday, Manchester United face cross-city foes Manchester City at Old Trafford, a pivotal game in the race to finish in the top three of the Women’s Super League.
United are currently four points ahead of City with a superior goal difference; a win would take a third place finish out of reach for City. If City were to win, however, that gap reduces to one point and it is all to play for in the last game of the season – when United face a tough trip to the Emirates to face Arsenal.
City end the season at Crystal Palace, who are to be relegated to the Championship at the end of this season.
City come into the game off the back of a tight 1-0 win against Leicester City. The main positives in that game were the reintroduction of Lauren Hemp and Alex Greenwood, who had both been missing for months with injury. Their reintegration buoyed the team to the win, with Hemp providing the assist for Jess Park’s winner.
What to expect from City
United were narrowly beaten by Chelsea mid-week, and ahead of the derby manager Marc Skinner has spoken about the positives of having such a short turnaround between big games:
“When you play a big game like that in the middle of the week, it always prepares me as a manager and players as a team for another big challenge. You kind of get in the flow of big challenges. It doesn’t hit you cold…You actually are disappointed because you should have won the game, so that bodes well going into this”.
Skinner was also asked about what he expects from City:
“You have to go full throttle against Manchester City for the whole game and take their threats.”
On the reintroduction of Hemp and Greenwood and what this teams for a team facing City, Skinner asserted that “it is about adapting again, more importantly, to the qualities of the players coming in, they have to make them adapt”.
He continued: “I expect a tough game. I expect, you know the quality of the players that are returning for them.”
If United win, they will have done the league double against City for the first time. This is not the focus for the United boss, however:
“For me, my ego doesn’t scream loud enough for that to be the case. For me, it’s about trying to win the game because we want to qualify for the Champions League…the reality hasn’t really changed for us – if we can beat City and we can beat Arsenal, we finish second in the table. So for us, that’s more of a carrot than just beating Manchester City again”.
On the game being at Old Trafford
When United face City on Sunday, the match will be played at United’s ‘Theatre of Dreams’; Old Trafford. The women’s team started their season there, beating West Ham 3-0 in front of a disappointing crowd of just over 12,000. Over 30,000 tickets have already been sold for this game.
A derby provides more excitement, particularly given the scoreline when the two sides met at the Etihad stadium earlier this year. United ran out 4-2 winners courtesy of a hattrick from Ella Toone. Skinner was asked about the impact Old Trafford may have on the game:
“I remember the last time we played them here, they were highly motivated, and we have to make sure we go and beat that motivation level.” He added that “we have to take the stadium away and just try to win the game”.
On the importance of Champions League football
If United do manage to cross the finish line in second or third place, they will enter the Champions League next season (third place to the qualifying round, second place to the group stage). Skinner spoke about the importance of Champions League football for recruitment:
“I feel that people want to come to Manchester but maybe we do not get picked because we’re not in the Champions League, and that’s where players want to play – so I think it is huge for recruitment”.
Recruitment was the theme when Skinner spoke about European competition; the United boss also highlighted the need for a deep squad to manage the number of games when you are in multiple competitions:
“But if you were to go into a European competition, our squad depth would not have been good enough this year. I have no doubt about that. And I think it’s recruiting the right team”.
On United’s season
Last year, United finished fifth and out of contention for Champions League football. Ahead of this season, there were a number of high-profile departures: club captain Katie Zelem, World’s Best goalkeeper Mary Earps, and World Cup winner Lucia Garcia all left the club.
Recruitment focused on a mixture of youth and experience: Grace Clinton returned from her loan spell at Tottenham Hotspur, and United also recruited her best friend and Spurs teammate Celin Bizet.
Alongside Bizet and Clinton, Dominique Janssen was brought in from VfL Wolfsburg. Janssen won the league title with Arsenal, and was an important part of the Netherlands squad that won the 2017 European Championship.
Used primarily as a centre-back for her national team and at previous clubs, at United she has played as a central defensive midfielder.
Asked about the impact of Janssen on United’s season and against Chelsea in particular, Skinner was positive:
“She makes you defend less in the back line because she covers more in the midfield line. What I was really impressed with was her composure with the ball. I feel that she’s growing in there and I challenged her because she came from playing centre half…my challenge to her is to continue these last three games to try and do the same impactful job that she’s done.”
Speaking about United’s season more generally, the head coach was similarly positive:
“We’ve been excellent this season, considering we’ve had, you know, a start where we had to find out who we were…and then taking Chelsea toe to toe, which I don’t think we’ve done before in all honesty.”
Manchester United vs Manchester City kicks off at 12:00 on Sunday, the 4th May. UK viewers can watch the match on Sky Sports.
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